Work on $1.57b Jewel project to kick off by year end
PUBLISHED ONOctober 30, 2014 11:30 PMByAdrian Lim
A Joint-Venture between construction firms Woh Hup and Obayashi Singapore has been awarded a $1.57 billion contract to build Changi Airport's Project Jewel, and carry out expansion works for Terminal 1.
Construction works are expected to start at the end of the year, said the Jewel Changi Airport Trustee and the Changi Airport Group (CAG), which announced the tender results yesterday.
The two firms are well-known in the construction industry.
Local player Woh Hup has been involved in projects such as Clifford Pier, MacDonald House and the recently completed conservatories at Gardens by the Bay, while Obayashi Singapore, a subsidiary of Japanese firm Obayashi Corporation, has completed projects such as the new wing at Plaza Singapura, Singapore Management University's city campus and the Esplanade Bridge.
Mr Yong Tiam Yoon, deputy chairman of Woh Hup, said the complexity of the works involved make the latest project a very exciting and challenging one.
Project Jewel, a tie-up between CAG and shopping mall developer CapitaMalls Asia, is a 1.4 million sq ft (13,000 sq m) mixed-use complex with retail outlets, airport services and a hotel.
It will be built largely on the site of Terminal 1's current 3.5ha surface carpark, which will make way for it.
Designed by renowned architect Moshe Safdie, Project Jewel will feature a distinctive dome-shaped facade made of glass and steel.
Highlights inside include a 40m-tall waterfall and a lush, indoor garden. Terminal 1 will be expanded to have a larger arrival hall and more spacious baggage claim areas, as well as a five-storey basement carpark. There will also be new pedestrian bridges linking Project Jewel to Terminals 2 and 3.
Project Jewel and the majority of expansion work for Terminal 1 are targeted for completion by the end of 2018.
Earlier this month, a trial closure of the 850-space carpark at Terminal 1 saw motorists redirected to Terminal 2's Carpark 2B.
They then took a skytrain or shuttle bus to get to Terminal 1.
This article was first published on October 29, 2014.
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