‘Gov’t to float tender for $170m project to revamp desert road within two weeks’

AMMAN — The Ministry of Public Works is expected to float a tender for the implementation of the desert highway rehabilitation project within two weeks, Minister Sami Halaseh said on Sunday.

Funded by the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), the project’s total cost is $170 million, divided into a $65 million grant signed last November and a $105 million soft loan, the minister told The Jordan Times over the phone.

Halaseh noted that the ministry on Saturday addressed the final funding agreement to the SFD, adding that floating the tender will take place “immediately” after the paperwork between the two sides is finalisation.

The agreement entails a complete rebuilding of the 220km road, which runs from the Queen Alia International Airport intersection to Maan Governorate, he said.

Work will be carried out over six stages, each covering around 30 to 35km of the road, over a total duration of 18 months, according to the minister. 

Halaseh highlighted the desert highway as the main road linking the capital to the southern region, particularly the Aqaba port, citing increased traffic on the road after the Syrian border was closed some two years ago.

The desert road extends from Amman to Aqaba and passes through Karak, Tafileh and Maan.

Over the past few years, the desert road has witnessed several car accidents, mainly involving overturned vehicles, which resulted in many deaths.