Companies from the UAE, China, Japan, Switzerland and Spain are vying for Iraq’s Baghdad Metro project with an estimated cost of $2.5 billion.

The National Investment Commission (NIC) said in a statement published in the local press on Tuesday that it has opened the bids for the project and they include separate firms and alliances of foreign companies.

Companies identified by NIC include Dubai-based ARJ Holding, Japan’s Hitachi and Siemens of Germany along with Chinese firms and a consortium of companies from Spain and from the UAE and Switzerland.

Officials said on Monday the project, Iraq’s first metro, would be awarded all bids are evaluated by the consultant at the end of May.