The bin Laden family made its fortune in construction, and Omar is involved in a number of projects around the Middle East. In 2010, he founded the Qatar Bin Laden Group, which is bidding on contracts for projects related to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Reuters reports.
The Qatari construction company has formed a joint venture with Spanish firm Coprosa. It hopes to become the Qatari government’s contractor of choice, as the country prepares to host the World Cup in ten years’ time.
“We want to be involved in the Doha Metro and other high-speed rail projects in Qatar, as well as hydraulics and water treatment plants,” bin Laden said. “Coprosa has particular experience with high-speed rail projects, and we want to make use of that. We hope to be submitting proposals by the end of June.
“There is a limited time-frame for projects in Qatar. It’s all happening in the next 10 years, and we want to be involved as much as we can.”
The Doha Metro project will connect stadiums to an underground section of the Qatari capital. Over 20,000 workers are expected to work on the massive infrastructure project.
Qatar plans to spend 40 percent of its budget on infrastructure projects between now and the end of the decade. Expenditures will include $20 billion on new roads, $11 billion on a new international airport and $5.5 billion on a seaport.
Bin Laden family businesses fall under the umbrella of the Saudi Binladin Group. The global syndicate earns over $2 billion-a-year in revenue and has offices in Europe and the Middle East.
Qatar controversially won the rights to host the 2022 World Cup. The sport’s marquee event will come to the Middle East for the first time.
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