---
source_url: "https://www.constructionbriefing.com/news/dont-miss-out-how-tenders-will-work-for-the-50bn-tel-aviv-metro-megaproject/8118300.article"
title: "Interview: How tenders will work on $50bn Tel Aviv Metro megaproject - Construction Briefing"
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> **Original source:** https://www.constructionbriefing.com/news/dont-miss-out-how-tenders-will-work-for-the-50bn-tel-aviv-metro-megaproject/8118300.article

The scale alone makes the project stand out globally: it is the largest infrastructure project in Israel’s history and is reportedly one of the five largest transportation projects underway globally. Three metro lines – M1, M2 and M3 – will be delivered in parallel across one of the most densely populated urban areas in Israel, with 109 stations and a network stretching 150km currently planned.

That decision to build all three lines simultaneously, rather than sequentially, reflects the urgency. Tel Aviv’s metropolitan area accounts for more than half of Israel’s economic activity but currently lacks a metro system, placing increasing strain on transport infrastructure.

For contractors and suppliers, the programme represents one of the largest upcoming pipelines of tunnelling and heavy civil works worldwide. For Lea Shmool, vice president at NTA Metropolitan Mass Transit System and head of the directorate of Line M3, it is also a test of whether a complex, multi-line metro can be procured and delivered at pace, even amid regional instability.

_Construction Briefing_ spoke to Shmool about how the procurement process will work, how risk is being managed, and why international contractors are still being urged to participate.

##### Where does the project currently stand in terms of planning and procurement?

“The kickoff actually was on 24 January where the line managers were appointed and the design started. First of all, I need to say that there are two major stages in terms of procurement. We called it the Infra 1 stage and the Infra 2 stage.

“Infra 1 stage is mainly all the civil works. We are building the stations and the tunnels – the heavy civil work is done on this stage. And then the Infra 2 stage comes right after that. This is erecting all the train systems and everything that’s connected to the trains themselves, the rolling stock, the trains, and systems.”

She adds that the scale of the civil works has driven a highly structured packaging approach.

“Because it’s so huge, it’s going to be divided into something like 12 big packages. Going from around €1 billion to the biggest package of around €3 billion.”

![An artist's impression of Tel Aviv HaShalom Metro station (Image courtesy of NTA)](https://www.constructionbriefing.com/Images/270xany/20260402-162350-HaShalom-2.png) An artist’s impression of Tel Aviv HaShalom Metro station (Image courtesy of NTA)

#####   
How far advanced is the prequalification process?

“Right now, we are in a prequalification stage and you can see it on the NTA website.

“We had a very nice \[prequalification\] conference with a lot of foreign companies in February and they showed a lot of interest. It was really interesting to see, even with the situation and everything going in the air, a lot of foreign companies came into Israel and showed a lot of interest in this project.

“So we are now going to close this prequalification stage in the end of this month. That’s the plan. And then we are going to qualify several groups – hopefully a lot of groups – in order for them to participate in the tenders themselves, for the packages.”

##### When will tenders be released and contracts awarded?

“The tenders themselves are going to be published from the end of this year, 2026, going into 2027, and maybe the last one at the start of 2028.

“Because it’s a design-build tender, we’re anticipating that every tender – from the time it’s published until the award – is something like 18 months.

“Alongside this, the systems packages will follow on a parallel timeline.

“In the meantime, from June this year, we are going to publish the prequalification for the Infra 2 stage.”

##### What enabling works are already underway?

“Right now we are doing some advanced work, some utility diversion, which is very important for when the contractors for the civil work come in. A lot of the utilities that are right now into the footprint of the stations are going to be relocated.

“That is to lower the risk to the contractors coming in, to let them just start work immediately.”

##### Has the current regional conflict affected contractor interest?

![Lea Shmool is a vice president of NTA and head of directorate of the M3 line of the Tel Aviv Metro (Image courtesy of NTA)](https://www.constructionbriefing.com/Images/270xany/20260402-162337-Lea-Shmool.jpeg) Lea Shmool is a vice president of NTA and head of directorate of the M3 line of the Tel Aviv Metro (Image courtesy of NTA)

“Not really, actually, because everybody understands that it’s a period of time – it’s going to end. And life will be coming back to normal in a very short time.

“We experience these kind of periods throughout the years and foreign contractors are working now in Israel. We are now building the LRT (light railway) lines, and the work hasn’t stopped for a minute.

“The sites are secured, the people are working under some constraints of course, but people are working. And once this period is over, everything comes back to normal.”

She emphasises that the scale of the programme outweighs short-term concerns.

“This kind of project is so big, the scale is so big, nobody can say ‘I’m not interested in that’.

“It’s not only contractors, it’s the whole metro industry that’s going to come into this project.”

##### What level of construction activity is expected?

“When it comes to just the tunnel boring machines (TBMs) themselves, we anticipate to be 24 or 25 machines in parallel working in this project.”

She adds that the opportunity extends well beyond tunnelling.

“You are talking about consumables, you are talking about the whole field of monitoring. You’re talking about QA and QC companies, surveying companies. All this dewatering issue – a lot of expertise that’s going to come in.

“It’s a major opportunity for everyone in this industry to come in and do good business.”

##### What lessons have been taken from other global metro projects?

“We have learned a lot from other big projects. There’s Crossrail in the UK, there’s the Grand Paris Express in France, which is of a pretty similar scale.

“And we had a lot of learning and studying from this project. This is why the scheme of procurement is how it is.

“We divided only things that can be integrated, not running into a major problem of integration afterwards.

“The integration is very important within one line, between the lines, within the systems of all the lines and so forth.

“So all of that is embedded already in the documents of the procurement tenders that we are going to publish.”

##### How is risk being allocated across the programme?

“Risk allocation is one of the things that we looked into in a very careful way.

“We have our own experience in Israel with large projects and we have our own lessons as well when it comes to how to do things in Israel: how to control the cost, how to not allocate risks that are Israeli risks to the foreign contractors that are coming into the country – like the permits for example.”

Instead, NTA is taking responsibility for local complexities.

“We have asked ourselves what part of the permits is the foreign company going to do and what part of the permits are we already going to do ourselves in order to be ready for them?

“The kind of risks that we think they cannot handle as well as the owner can do it with the authorities in Israel, we are preparing for them in advance.”

The aim is to allow contractors to focus on delivery and their own areas of expertise.

##### What is unique about Line M3, the line that you are in charge of?

“M3 is kind of a circular line that connects the other two lines. For us, it’s easier because most of the line does not stray into very dense urban areas so we can do things faster.”

This, in turn, has led to a different procurement approach.

“We are not doing it in a design-build scheme, we are doing it in a construction scheme.

“So we are developing the detailed design now, starting into construction earlier than the other lines.”

![An artist's impression of Tel Aviv HaShalom Metro station (Image courtesy of NTA)](https://www.constructionbriefing.com/Images/270xany/20260402-162350-HaShalom-3.png) An artist’s impression of Tel Aviv HaShalom Metro station (Image courtesy of NTA)

#####   
When will construction begin?

“On M3 we are going to start six of the stations next year on a detailed design scheme and we are going to publish the tenders in June or July this year. They will be pure construction – the design is done by the owner.”

“M3 is going to begin next year and the other lines early 2028. When you take into account the tender process, we think early 2028 is when heavy construction all around Tel Aviv greater area is going be starting with all the three lines.”

##### What is the expected timeline for delivery?

“Right now the plan is to start operating the lines in sections from around 2037.

“This is one of the lessons we learned from other projects: to start operation in sections that are give added value to the population.”

She describes a phased commissioning strategy.

“The first sections for all the three lines are going be starting operation in 2037. And from there on, we are going to add more and more sections until the whole network is completed.

“It’s very ambitious but it’s feasible.”