Dubai contractor Drake & Scull International, which will list its shares on Monday, has won a contract worth Dh600 million ($163.4 million) to provide district cooling in Bahrain, it said on Sunday.

Drake -- which specialises in mechanical, engineering and plumbing businesses -- will provide 85,000 tonnes of district cooling over a five-year period for Durrat Al Bahrain, a 21,000 hectare (51,891 acres) island city project, the company's chief executive Khaldoun Tabari told Reuters.

"I see Bahrain as a good market. There are a lot of projects there," he said, adding that Kuwait Finance House and Bahrain's Ministry of Planning are the project developers.

Tabari told Reuters last week it would spend as much as Dh500 million in acquisitions as it looks to expand in the Gulf and North Africa as its once-booming home market suffers a sharp downturn as a result of the financial crisis.

Drake's shares begin trading on the Dubai Financial Market on Monday, 8 months after its public offering. - Reuters