According to Arab Times, which cited senior sources, Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has granted its largest environmental project for cleaning polluted soil to numerous local and international corporations for a total cost of more than KD1 billion ($3.31 billion).

As per the article, which cited sources in Kuwait's Central Agency for Public Tenders, the project, which is considered one of the world's largest, would be implemented in five phases and contracts are expected to be signed within the next two weeks (CAPT).

The two major stages of the project are North Kuwait Drilling, Transport and Processing Project and the South Kuwait Exploration, Transport and Processing Project which will together treat 13 million cu m of oil contaminated soil, stated the report.

This has to do with soil damage, which includes lakes, wet and dried oil, and oil-contaminated piles. As a result of the demolition of around 700 oil wells in Kuwait, the region now comprises 114 square kilometres of land contaminated with crude oil.

North Kuwait Drilling, Transport and Processing Project is divided into two sites with a total value of $381.58 million, said the Arab Times report.

The first site (Zone One) contract was awarded to a consortium of Khaled Ali Al Kharafiand Brothers for Construction Contracting and Lamor Corporation for $193.58 million, while the Zone Two work was awarded for $188 million to Kuwaiti Company for Plant Construction and Contracting and Environmental Technology Management Company.

According to CAPT sources, the Zone One contract for the South Kuwait Drilling, Transport, and Processing project was awarded to the alliance of Khaled Ali Al Kharafi and Brothers for Construction Contracting and Lamor Corporation for $196.53 million, while the Zone Two contract was won by the Heavy Engineering Industries and Shipbuilding Company in partnership with Zaopin for $185.23 million.