Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan will enhance supports to overseas large-scaled infrastructure projects requiring advanced construction technologies. A team of experts from public and private sectors will be sent to study pipeline projects and identify suitable construction methods and points of attention. Advises given by the team are expected to encourage the counter country’s government to employ methods in which Japanese companies have advantages. The ministry intends to back up Japanese builders in winning orders of big projects such as tunnels and bridges.

According to MLIT, either local project owners or contractors lack sufficient capacity to complete technically challenging construction, which frequently end with delays and defective works. Though they are capable to practice the construction, Japanese firms often lose cost competition over local and foreign companies. An expert team will give suggestions to local governments on technical matters. They will prompt the authorities to prepare bidding documents which establish favorable conditions for Japanese contractors.

A subject country will be selected in fiscal 2014. The government aims to make it a permanent project in the future. Possible targets are Southeast Asia and Turkey. (2014/03/27)