Work on a housing complex for workers of Oman LNG's Qalhat plant is on track and construction should be completed by the end of this year, a senior company official has said.

The Qalhat Housing Complex which is being built 10 km from the plant near Sur, Oman, is designed to provide OLNG employees with family accommodation and community facilities such as a mosque, a recreation centre, a sports hall, an elementary school and a kindergarten, a commercial centre, and a maintenance block as well as an amenity open space.

'Construction of the complex started in October 2000 and about one third of the project has been finished,' Oman LNG Housing Manager Cees van Liere was quoted as saying by Al Ghanjah, the company magazine.

The complex includes 130 double-storey residential villas. All villas feature maid quarters and private shaded parking. They will be fully furnished and will be connected to a central satellite system.

The complex will provide community facilities for up to 1,000 people. A commercial centre will include a clinic, a pharmacy, a travel agency, a baby ware shop, a photographic shop, an accessories and gifts shop, a salon, a tailoring shop, a restaurant, and office accommodation for the administration of the housing complex as a whole.

The current LNG Clinic in Sur town will be moved into the commercial centre.

An elementary school will provide education for children of up to 12 years, with eight classrooms plus other common rooms (arts, science, library, etc.) in addition to a kindergarten section.

The recreation centre is expected to function as a community centre, catering for social and sports activities. It includes meeting and function rooms, indoor sports rooms, three swimming pools and club dining, as well as changing accommodation for sports and swimming.

The sports hall will be a two-floor building with courts for badminton, volleyball and tennis, changing and shower rooms.

The maintenance block consists of a workshop and storage buildings, a small administrative office and a parking lot.

The amenity open space will provide the neighbourhood with a small public garden.