Addis Abeba- a new project every week!

[Simfan34]

It has seemed to me that over the past few months, there has been a new project popping up in Addis Abeba every week or so. I struck me that I might want to share these with you.

So here are the projects from the past few weeks
WEEK OF AUGUST 1
ACCESS RESORT HOTEL (is this really the building?)

For any curious observer of Addis Abeba’s real estate market, the promise made by managers of Access Capital Services SC, to hand over flats in two five-storey buildings within a year’s time, is indeed unique. Yet, what took the industry by surprise is their pledge to pay back homebuyers the full amount they pay upfront with 15pc annual interest, an amount above the rate banks charge borrowers, when and if the company fails to complete the apartments within a year.

In cases where homebuyers are reluctant to get their money back and want the flats they pay for, Access’s managers promise to pay monthly rental fees of up to 5,000 Br, until the time they hand over these flats to their buyers. The company has been selling these offers, running full-page ads in the newspapers in town, and inserting colourful supplements, with three-dimensional illustrations of the different types of flats.

Managers at Access will deliver the houses on time, they are confident; albeit theirs is a unique commitment. But what attracted many buyers, more than the time in which the developers promised to complete the construction, was the irresistible prices tagged on the different types of flats. The apartments include studios at 365,000 Br, one bedroom units at 495,000 Br, two bedroom units 649,000 Br, and three bedroom units 750,000 Br, including value-added tax (VAT).

Many people, over 23, according to some sources, have already bought these houses; in some cases, there are buyers who bought two or three flats.
.....................

Neither Access Capital Homes nor its subsidiary, Access Real Estate, has leased any plot directly from the City Government. They are rather known for an apartment building under construction adjacent to Nyala Motors. The plot once belonged to an individual who sold his lease rights to Access Real Estate, a public company established two years ago with over 600 shareholders, where Access Capital Services is one of the major shareholders.

The apartment near Megenagna is halfway through the construction phase, but all of the flats are sold out, according to reliable sources.

The second project bearing the name Access and with two blocks comprising 160 flats is planned to be constructed on a 8,233sqm plot, located in Yeka District, in front of the CMC compound. Developers promise to complete the construction work within a year, owing to the construction technology they plan to introduce for the first time in the local housing market. The use of steel structures (as opposed to concrete) and prefabricated magnesium oxide board (instead of bricks or shallow blocks) will drive prices down, for the benefit of homebuyers, they also believe.

Whether or not magnesium oxide board is cheaper than blocks is challenged by engineers in the industry. But, its strength (it is the material used to manufacture pull balls) and the speed in which it is manufactured for assembly is unchallenged. Ethiopia has a bigger deposit of magnesium oxide, in the Adolla area, Oromia Regional State, than the United States and China have, experts believe.

Access Capital Services has entered into a contract with two local sister companies, Living Steel Construction Plc and Ybel Industrial Plc, to be supplied with both steel structures and magnesium oxide boards. Using these materials will make it a pioneering firm in the real estate industry.

The two companies, whose plant is in a huge warehouse inside La Gare Railway Station in Addis Abeba, rented from the Ethio-Djibouti Railway Enterprise, has hired four foreign experts with similar construction experience in Qatar. These experts, from Belgium, the United Kingdom, and South Africa, will train and supervise local employees who will assemble the prefabricated houses at Access’s site in the CMC area, says Yonas Tadesse, general manager of Living Steel Construction Plc.

The building type offers quality, durability and faster and more efficient installation for low-rise residential and non-residential construction, according to Befekadu Asefa, project manager of Living Steel Construction Plc. The boards use materials that can absorb heat and sound, according to Albert Van Tonder, the contracted Belgian. It is also resistant to fire and extreme weather conditions, the managers claim.

The local construction industry is a stranger to this. It is, instead, very familiar with concrete structures and shallow blocks. Both consume huge quantities of cement, whose price has escalated by over 300pc since 2005. And it takes time to put them together.

It is this new technology that will be used for the first time that Access’s managers are banking on to back their promises with. The technology will use less cement than conventional steel and shallow block structures, they believe, leading to reduced overall construction costs, and taking half the time needed for assembly.

“It is great to be a pioneer,” said a real estate developer who will hand over homes in the Lebu area to buyers in a few weeks. “But I would not dare to take that risk.”

The man behind the real estate project and general manager of Access Capital Services, Ermias T. Amelga, is known for his daring initiatives.

Ever since he came back from the United States in the mid-1990s, where he has just been over the past couple of weeks selling his new initiatives, he took over an edible oil mill from the state and turned it into the first water bottling plant, paving the way for the emergence of a new industry that is thriving now. Ermias pushed the limits to re-establish a share dealing group, once operational during the Emperor’s time, but with little success. Although his dreams of forming the first private equity firm may not have taken off in the way he originally planned it, has today’s Access Capital Services SC led the birth of the embryonic share companies market that has flourished.

Ermias was the promoter of what came to be Zemen Bank and is now its board chairman. It is a bank known for introducing bold moves in the banking industry, such as lending based on the viability of projects (away from traditional collateral based loans) and a commercial bank operating with a one branch concept but relying on much technology.

Many bankers in the industry are sceptical about whether these initiatives will work, such as advancing loans without collateralising assets. Yet, they cannot stop admiring his guts and daring moves.

“He thinks of business in the mindset of a US businessperson,” said a businessman resettled from the US in the real estate market.

That mindset is the desire and ability to take risks.

WEEK OF AUGUST 8

SUNSHINE DEVELOPMENT TAKES OFF









One is nearing completion

Marriott’s representatives scheduled to come to Addis next week

By Hayal Alemayehu

Sunshine Construction Plc has received a 4000sq.m. plot it requested a year ago from the Addis Ababa City Administration for a Marriott hotel project.

The company has almost finalized the construction work of what is projected to become a five-star executive apartment hotel project, Marriott Executive Apartment, built around Estifanos Church off Meskel Square.

The company has been negotiating with the management of Marriott to secure a franchise agreement for the hotel apartment it constructed. However, it was required to build a purpose built hotel with more than 250 rooms if it were to clinch the franchise agreement.

This forced the construction company to construct additional rooms which will help it to fulfill the basic requirement in order to secure the agreement.

The franchise agreement will involve the management of what will become the first Marriott apartment and courtyard hotels in Ethiopia to be built and owned by Sunshine Construction Plc.

If all goes according to plan, Marriott International will manage the five-star executive apartment hotel and the four-star hotel resort, Courtyard Marriott, to be built on the 4000sq.m. plot.

“In order to manage a hotel under its brand, Marriott requires that the hotel should, at least, have 250 rooms,” Samuel Tafesse, managing director of the company told The Reporter. “It is mandatory that we launch the construction of the courtyard hotel. The hotel apartment has 110 rooms while the courtyard will have 160.

“We had earlier on signed an initial agreement with Marriott and the construction of what will become the first Marriott Executive Hotel Apartment will be in accordance with the agreement,” Samuel said.

The final agreement between the two parties is expected to take place this year.

According to Samuel, the overall interior design of the executive hotel apartment was undertaken by Marriott International, for which Sunshine paid USD 50,000.

Sunshine Construction PIC will invest over 250 million birr in the Marriott Executive Apartment when the project is completed while the investment layout for the Courtyard Marriott is projected to hit 200 million birr.

Representatives of Marriott International are scheduled to come to Addis Ababa next week to diseases the franchise agreement with Sunshine Construction PIC, according to Samuel.

Marriott International is a leading lodging company, according to information posted at its website. Its heritage can be traced to a root beer stand opened in Washington, D.C., in 1927 by J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott. Today, Marriott International has more than 3,200 lodging properties located in the United States and 66 other countries and territories.

Sunshine construction heats up
By Muluken Yewondwossen
Sunshine Real Estate, a partner of Sunshine Construction, will launch the construction of low cost apartments for middle income residents of the capital. The company officially inaugurated 210 Ground + One villas a week ago constructed at CMC area on Mere Luke site at the cost of 364 million birr.
Dangameyelw Girma, head of business development and public relations for Sunshine, told Capital that his company will construct 334 high level luxurious villas around CMC and that other luxury condos and middle income apartments will be built in new areas at Bole Beshale, Megenagna, Estifanos and CMC.
Until 2016 the real estate developer plans to construct about 5 billion birr worth of residential houses in different areas of the capital. According to the business development and public relations head, 14 middle class apartments will be constructed at CMC area at a cost of 1.2 billion birr. “The low cost apartments and villas will be erected on Bole Beshale site,” he added. Another 334 deluxe villas will be constructed on Mere Luke at Hill View project that worth about 2.2 billion birr.
The 26, Bole Beshale low cost apartments will be erected on 50,000 square meters at the cost of 220 million birr and the 89 villas will also be built on another 50,000 square meter area that will consume 140 million birr. The Bole Beshale project includes the construction of 75 middle class villas at the cost of 180 million birr on the area of 50,000 square meters.
The other new project is the Megenagna ten deluxe apartments that have 10 floors. The Megenagna project will be built on about 14,000 square meters at a cost of 500 million birr. Sunshine also plans to construct ten fifteen floor apartments around Estifanos area at cost of 750 million birr.
Two years ago the company transferred 151 villas from the houses built in CMC to buyers. last week they trasfered 59 villas, and rented a supermarket, gymnasium, swimming pool, clinic, and a football field.
The developer has spent about 36 million birr for the compound’s additional facilities.
Samuel Taffese, head and owner of Sunshine Construction said that his company constructed seven additional rooms to be used as offices for the compound residents association.
The company has also constructed and transferred over 711 luxury condo houses around Gerji, the project also has 27 shops and 15 luxury villas, and another 11 apartment buildings have erected on CMC areas.
In addition to residential home, Sunshine has also focused on road and hotel construction where it has registered strong performances. It inaugurated three asphalt road projects during the previous fiscal year for the Ethiopian Roads Authority.
Currently, several real estate developers are registered in Addis Ababa. Still, many have failed to meet their deadlines for transferring homes to customers.
Meanwhile the government has launched the construction of low cost houses all over the country and transferred tens of thousands condominium houses in six years. The capital’s housing demand continues to grow as demand outpaces supply.

[Simfan34]

WEEK OF AUGUST 15:
CHUAN HUI INTERNATIONAL HOTEL'

Originally Posted by Jimma Times

Tallest building in Africa to be constructed in Ethiopia
Published 08/19/2010 - 1:54 a.m. GMT
42-storey tower of the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) headquarters under construction. 58 storey high hotel is also planned in Ethiopia
A 58 floor high, five star hotel in Addis Ababa will become the tallest building in Ethiopia as well as the tallest in the whole African continent. Presently, the tallest building in Africa is the 54 floors high Carlton Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The China-based Guangdong Chuanhui Group, which is currently building the biggest cement factory in Ethiopia, will construct the hotel skyscraper. Addis Ababa mayor Kuma Demeksa told the company's President Mr. Yanlin Liu the hotel project would "provide jobs and promote the local economic development" and it would become an African landmark in the highest city in Africa. Ethiopian Trade and Industry Minister Girma Birru said his country welcomes more Chinese and Asian companies to invest in the growing tourism sector and to build more skyscrapers.

The second tallest building in Ethiopia will be the 42-storey tower of the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) headquarters that is under construction. (pictured right)

* 58 storey five star hotel in Ethiopia (CAPITAL NEWSPAPER)


The tallest building in Ethiopia is on its way following a land agreement between Chinese based, Guangdong Chuanhui Group and the Addis Ababa City Administration. The 58 floor, five star, Chuan Hui International Hotel, one of five proposed luxury hotel projects, will take up 50,000 square meters of land and will cost 2.4 billion birr.

“We requested the land in the area from Meskel Square to Bole,” Alem Desta, an official of the company told Capital.

Plans are for construction to begin right away and finish in 18 months, according to officials.
Currently, the government wants to increase the number of deluxe hotels in the town. “The City Administration is facilitating the plot, but we don’t know where the exact location is,” Alem added.

[Image: Mayor Kuma Demeksa with company President Yanlin Liu]


Recently the company official and the town Mayor held talks about the hotel. Kuma Demekssa, mayor of Addis Ababa, promised Yanlin Liu, president of the Chinese company, they would finalize the land lease process quickly to implement the project. The City Administration has organized a special team to follow the lease process

The Chinese company manages six large hotels in China and wants to implement the project quickly. According to information obtained from the City Land Administration Office, four additional local and international investors have submitted five star hotel proposals to the city administration.

Today there are only three five star hotels in Addis, but luxury hotels are booming in the city together with other tourist attractions in the country. Addis Abeba is becoming more and more the conference venue for Africa with the African Union Commission and the Economic Commission for Africa, among others, regularly hosting large meetings here. Many hoteliers expect high occupancy rate throughout the year.

Meanwhile, Guangdong Chuanhui Group officially inaugurated its cement plant at Mojo last Sunday, and Chuanhui Plastic Plc., another leg of the Chinese company has began producing plastic bags two months ago at Dukem. Another new cement manufacturing plant, C.H Clinker Manufacturer Plc is in its final stage to start production in Gebre Guracha area. This factory is constructed at a cost of three billion birr.

WEEK OF AUGUST 22:
SHERATON EXPANSION BEGINS'

Ethiopia - Locals make way for Sheraton expansion

By Yohannes Anberbir

The 42 hectares expansion project of Sheraton Addis Hotel, Luxury Collection can finally be realized after a long dispute with residents living in the concerned area. The five-star hotel in Addis Ababa has reached an “agreement” with the locals, who will move, mostly against their will, to condominium houses and prepared plots in different parts of the capital city.

The residents were initially told to be relocated by mid July. They refused, however, complaining about the compensation offered to them by the Addis Ababa City Administration, which they considered to be insufficient. The Arada and Kirkos districts, where the residents live, organized a meeting last week to discuss these issues and solve the disagreement.
The districts promised to provide condominium houses to individuals currently residing in the city government kebele houses and agreed to provide sufficient plots to the residents that have their own houses in the area together with a financial compensation. “There is no difference from the districts’ former compensation offer, but we don’t have any other option but to just accept it,” a resident not willing to give his name told Capital.
The districts have promised to give tenants in the kebele houses priority to obtain condominium apartments. Still, the residents are obliged to put down 20 percent of the condominium value, which is unrealistic, according to the resident.
Individuals, who are residing in their own houses, say they should receive compensation in line with the current value of their property. But, according to them, the local authorities have undervalued their houses so much that the compensation offered is not sufficient to build a new house on the provided plot. They seem to have given up their fight out of fear of losing everything.
“The valuation made to compensate our houses is not a proper one, and not sufficient to build our homes on the plots allocated to us, but we don’t have any other option,” an individual who owns a house at the area told Capital, defeated.
Although most of the residents are not satisfied with the compensation, they gave up fearing a forced eviction. Some of them have already signed an agreement with the districts to move to the condominium houses, while other inhabitants are expected to finalize this process within the next two weeks.
When the Sheraton Addis hotel construction project was launched 12 years ago, the dwellers at the location were re-located at Gerji area by the owner, Sheik Mohamed al-Amoudi. Each dweller had gotten as a compensation a bigger house than they had before and as the area was at the time remote, they enjoyed special bus transportation to and from the city for a while.

MEANWHILE, THE RADISSON BLU NEARS COMPLETION

[Simfan34]

WEEK OF AUGUST 29
GHION EXPANSION APPROVED

Renderings of the Hotel, Courtesy of Andrew Wood of GHM Architects.

The Privatization and Public Enterprises Supervising Agency (PPESA) reached a decision for a joint ownership of the 59-year old Ghion Hotel yesterday with an Ethiopian investor, Aklileberhan Mekonnen Haileselassie. The bid process, which took about two years to complete, attracted investors from Abu Dhabi, Egypt, Kuwait, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Germany. The Agency finally decided on a joint partnership with Aklileberhan. The takeover includes the construction of two new four-and five-star hotels on the premises of the current Ghion Hotel worth USD 510 million.

Aklileberhan will have an 80 percent stake while the remaining 20 percent (USD 100 million) will remain with the Agency. The construction of the hotel is expected to be finalized in three years and four months period. The new establishment, which will be named Grand Ghion Hotel, will feature one new four-star hotel on the site where the current swimming pool is found and will be completed within a period of a year and four months. Another five-star hotel will be constructed after the current Ghion Hotel building is demolished.

“We won the bid because of the design we presented, the amount of money we offered and our great strategy of not to fire the existing workers of the hotel,” Aklileberhan said. “Instead of firing the workers, we believe that it will be better to train them and build their capacity.”

The new design will include a helipad and presidential suites. According to Aklileberhan, they have negotiated with Intercontinental Hotels and Resorts to take over the management of the upcoming Grand Ghion Hotel. Next week the new Grand Ghion Hotel will be established and the board will commence its duties.
“In terms of design and size, the hotel will be one-of-a-kind and the best in Africa; its presidential suites can accommodate leaders of Africa for African Union summit,” the representative of the investor and chairperson of the board, Costantinos Berhe (PhD), said.

As per the request of the Agency, the investor’s financial background and capacity was attached and sent to the Agency and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for verification.

“My deepest desire is to support my country with the expansion of the hotel industry and other activities,” Aklileberhan said. He is also planning to build hotels in Lalibela in the Amhara Regional State and Axum in the Tigray Regional State. Building a hospital in Jimma in the Oromia Regional State is also one of the investor’s plans. Moreover, he is also planning to contribute USD 20 million for the establishment of Axum’s museum through the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and finance the construction of a new secondary school on the premises of St Trinity‘s Church.
Aklileberhan, along with his wife and children, owns twelve investment companies, two in Germany and eight in the UK. His headquarters are found in Switzerland.

Ghion Hotels Enterprise was established by the government in 1951 and used to operate a chain of 11 hotels, which were all found in north Ethiopia, except National Hotel, which was sold to the Ethiopian Athletics Federation a few months ago. Roha Hotel, one of the hotels administered by Ghion Hotel, was transferred to Ayat Real Estate S.C. after the latter won a bid. Despite operating old hotels with rundown facilities in many of its properties, including the one in Addis, the enterprise registered an after tax profit of 10.6 million birr in 2004. The hotel is well known for its tastefully furnished rooms, enchanting gardens with their exotic plants and flowers, and thermally heated bathing and swimming pools.

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 5
GHION EXPANSION APPROVED
NEW US EMBASSY TO BE LARGEST IN AFRICA

Sadly, there are no renders yet.

Nib International Bank S.C. (NIB) is about to construct their headquarters in the heart of Addis Ababa, close to the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE). It thereby joins other financial institutions in what seems to become Ethiopia’s financial centre.

NIB, one of the oldest private banks after the country embarked free market for the last 19 years, has secured 2,800 square meter of land just behind the National Theater, in front of the new headquarters of Awash International Bank and Awash Insurance Company. The twin towers that are being constructed by the two financial sister firms, Awash Bank and Insurance that is, will be one of the largest buildings of the capital city and are currently in their final stage.

Solomon Assefa, head of the NIB Business Development Department, told Capital that the city has given the plot for a lease period of fifty years.

Houses on the location, including residences and shops, are being demolished to prepare the plot for construction. The department head said “We expect the construction work to commence in the current fiscal year and finalize the project within a short period of time.”

According to Solomon, the management team of NIB is selecting a preferable design for their future headquarters. It also prepares all things necessary to finalize the project within the company’s set time schedule. The bank currently rents the ground part of Dembel Shopping Centre in Bole as its main office.

Most banks and insurance companies that have been established in the nineties have started constructing their own buildings now. Their head offices are mainly concentrated within a few kilometers from the NBE, thereby seemingly creating the financial heart of Addis Ababa.

There is no enforcement from the central bank to do so, though. Recently, one of the youngest banks, Oromia International Bank, has bought a 3,000 square meters compound in Goma Kuteba at a cost of 18 million birr for their future headquarters.

The new United States Embassy compound in Ethiopia is to amalgamate four separate U.S. agencies in to a single facility in the middle of next month. The embassy is said to be the largest in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to Thomas I. FitzPatrick, the project director.

Construction work on the embassy started in January 2008 with a plan of amalgamating four separate agencies into the facility. Currently, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Center for Disease Control (CDC), the U.S. Mission to the African Union and the bilateral U.S. Mission to Ethiopia are housed in four separate buildings in three different compounds.

The amalgamation of these agencies into a single facility was meant for the enhancement of daily coordination and for leading this to a more effective long-term implementation of the U.S. Global Health Initiative. The amalgamation will also save a considerable amount of time lost each day while shuttling between the agencies. To ease the working process for consulate and visa appliers, the Bank of Abyssinia is also going to have representation for financial transaction purposes. The new embassy will be certified as a leadership in energy and environmental design facility.

“Operating in a green environment is of importance to the Obama Administration conduct of diplomacy overseas in energy-efficient buildings,” Mr. FitzPatrick told The Reporter.

B.L. Harbert International LLC, an American company, assumed the overall design and construction of the new compound; and the planning architect was Zimmer Gunsul Frasca (ZGF) ZGF was assisted by DTN Engineering in Addis Ababa on the site work.

Costing a total of 126.7 million dollars for design and construction, the new embassy covers an area of 19,894 sq.m. The project has resulted in approximately 18.2 million dollars in sub-contracts to Ethiopian contractors. It has also provided employment opportunities to about 1,500 local workers. The consolidation of those agencies has required the embassy to study the overall staffing of the mission. However, given the state-of-the art facility, it will immediately recruit 12 technical staff for maintenance purpose.

B.L. Harbert International LLC, which have over 25 years of experience in building embassies in Africa, took over five local workers who had earned skills during the project and shift them to the new project. Likewise, the company will take between five and 10 Ethiopian employees to the next job in Dakar, Senegal, Billy L. Harbert president, and CEO of the company, told The Reporter.

[Simfan34]

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 12
NEW TWIN TOWERS IN ATAKILT TERA (the Vegetable Market)


From the left, Wubishet Workealemayehu, communications and public relations advisor of Bis Vegetable and Fruit Agro Industry SC and Wogderres Meles, chairman and general manager of the company, discuss the design of the company’s headquarters. The company is to construct 18 and 19-storey twin buildings at Atekelt Terra’s vegetable market, at a cost of 462.4 million Br. The company is expecting its permit very soon, after submitting its request and proposal to the Addis Abeba City Administration on November 16, 2010, according to Wogderres.

[Yoniii]

Ye hager Ambessa, Thank you Simfan!

[Simfan34]

Originally Posted by Yoniii

Ye hager Ambessa, Thank you Simfan!

Minemaydelem! Ethiopia tanasa! (that's clearly wrong)

[Ras Siyan]

Wow, just wow! I hope all these projects get realized, they will completely change the skyline of the city.

Go Addis

[èđđeůx]

A new project every week wow, just in a good way

Now imagine how many will pop up once Ethiopia really starts to fully take-off.

[Simfan34]

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 12
ADDIS ABEBA-NAZRET HIGHWAY

(Originally posted by Ahadu)


Video in Amharic, but you can see construction and renders.

Originally Posted by Ahadu

ENA
Addis Ababa, September 17, 2010 (Humera) - Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said the construction of the Addis-Adama Expressway will open a new chapter in the history of the country.

While visiting the project on Friday, Meles said the construction fo the 80-km expressway would further speed up the development of the country.

Meles said the expressway, which is estimated to cost 612 million US dollars, is part of the Five Year Growth and Transformation Plan.

Work and Urban Development Minister, Dr. Kassu Illala, some 350 million US dollars will be secured from the Chinese government in the form loan while the balance will be covered by the Ethiopian government.

The construction of the expressway is expected to be finalized in a period of the three years.

The route the country's busiest way in the country.

The construction of the route will enable to reach travelers in less than 50 minutes.

More than 20,000 vehicles commute along the Addis-Adama Road.

[Simfan34]

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 19
OROMIA PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE









(not actual renders, placeholders)

Walya Bus Given 22 Days to Vacate Future Oromia Pres. Office Site

The construction of the presidential office of the Oromia Regional State and six other buildings that was awarded to Afro Tsion Construction Company in July 2010, for 274.8 million Br, in Kebele 01, Nefas Silk Lafto District, is to start on October 11, 2010, after having been delayed.

A steering committee composed of the Oromia Urban Works Bureau, the district, and Walya Cross-country Bus Plc, which previously owned the 2,000sqm of land set aside for the construction and still has property on it, has set October 10, 2010, as the deadline for Walya to remove its properties.

Walya floated a tender for the sale of old buses, trucks, and metal bars that it has on the property, which will be closed on September 25, 2010. The winner has to remove the property within three days, according to the bid document.

“The land will be handed over to Afro Tsion by October 10, and it will start construction by October 11, whether Walya removes its property or not,” Gifawosen Desisa, head of the Infrastructure Design and Construction Implementation Process of the Oromia Urban Works Bureau, told Fortune.

In addition, three million Birr should be paid to Walya as compensation for the plot, the Nefas Silk Lafto District had recommended to the Addis Abeba City Administration. The recommendation is currently under consideration.

Afro Tsion Construction is currently making the necessary preparations for the work.

“We have started setting up the human resources and will start buying construction materials and bringing in machinery once we receive the land,” Tulu Gemechu, office engineer of the site, told Fortune.

The design of the project, which was done by Ultimate Consulting Engineers and Architects for free, includes a presidential office building, a counselling office building, an assembly hall, and four medium and small conference halls. The projected cost of the assembly hall, 101 million Br, requires the lion’s share of the total project cost of 274.8 million Br, while the council office takes the second highest at 56.2 million Br.

Ultimate and Afro Tsion are not new to the construction projects of the Oromia Urban Works Bureau with the former also having designed four buildings of the Oromia Regional Government Sectoral Office and the latter constructing them for 85 million Br.

Six construction companies including Rama Construction, DMC Construction, Teklebirhan Ambaye Construction, and Zamra Construction had initially put in bids for the construction of the seven buildings.

Be sure to read the disclaimer before becoming too excited.

[Simfan34]

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 29
NATIONWIDE RAIL, ADDIS LIGHT RAIL NETWORK BEGINS CONSTRUCTION



VIDEO

The government will be spending an average of 6 billion Birr per year for construction of the railway. According to the Ethiopian Railway Corporation (ERC), the construction would generate employment opportunity for over 300 thousand citizens.

Of course, Ethiopia is not new to train transport; nor is train transport foreign to Ethiopia. The two have had a century-old relations. Despite such a long tie, the poor train transport service in the country had, once, disrupted completely. At present, however, the service appears to have revived with modern technology by far better than the former.

Constructed in two phases, the new railway would link people in all corners of the country. According to Dr. Getachew Betru, Director General of ERC, the railway would stretch out in eight different directions across the country. Five railway tracks will be constructed in the first phase of the project.

In addition, the Addis Ababa light train project would extend from Ayat to Torhayloch Hospital joining the east to the west, the north to the south, and Dagmawi Minilik street to Kaliti main road. Dr. Getachew said the railway construction has two dimensions.

The new 317km railway would stretch from Addis Ababa to Me’eso town in Afar state crossing the rugged terrain. Chinese Company called CRGC will construct the railway.

ERC Board Chair, Hailemariam Desalegn said the railway would help sellers and consumers transact swiftly and at reasonable cost. The first phase of the project is expected to create over 300 thousand jobs. The government will spend 5 to 7 billion Birr annually for the project.

[abesha]

Originally Posted by Simfan34

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 19
OROMIA PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE



(not actual renders, placeholders)



Be sure to read the disclaimer before becoming too excited.

You really have a strange sense of humor.

[Simfan34]

Originally Posted by abesha

You really have a strange sense of humor.

I've mad a couple of jokes in my time, but that wasn't one of them