Companies from five different countries are reported to be interested in bidding for the tender of the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge, the foundation of which is set to be laid on March 18.

While Turkey's fourth Bosporus crossing the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge's groundbreaking ceremony on March 18 is approaching, the bidders to participate in the construction tender are being announced. At least five groups will compete for the tender in the Jan. 26 auction, where the identity of participants remains confidential. Companies from South Korea, Japan, China, Italy and the United Arab Emirates are planning to team up with local partners for the $5-billion contract.

Two sources talking to Bloomberg said Itochu, Japan's second largest trading company, and Japan's IHI Corporation, which is engaged in machinery manufacturing for steel bridges and various heavy industries, will team up with Turkey's Nurol Holding and Makyol İnşaat AŞ. According to the information provided by three other sources, Hyundai is planning to submit offers with Italian construction company Astaldi, İçtaş and Kalyon İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ. In addition, Cengiz İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ and Kolin İnşaat Turizm Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ, the contractors of the $7.5-billion Istanbul-İzmir highway, may build a consortium with Chinese construction giant Sichuan Road and Bridge Co. (CRBC) while SK Engineering & Construction Co. from the United Arab Emirates and South Korea's Daelim Industrial Co. have joined with Limak İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ and Yapı Merkezi İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ.

The 1915 Çanakkale Bridge is a part of the 352-kilometer highway project that will start from Kınalı Village connected to the Silivri district in Istanbul's south, pass through Tekirdağ and Çanakkale and end in Balıkesir's Savaştepe district.

The construction of the 2,023-meter-long bridge, which will connect Çanakkale's Lapseki and Gallipoli regions, is planned to take four years.