The estimated US$3bn project to build a water pipeline from In Salah in the east of the country to the desert town of Tamanrasset in the south is due to be completed by July, according to the water resources minister, Abdelmalek Sellal. The transfer of the first water was due to be made in March, said Mr Sellal, speaking in an interview with El Watan on March 4th. The project, which involves two 750-km pipelines, is one of the longest transfer projects in North Africa. Meanwhile, companies have until June 15th to bid for the contract to build a new mosque in Algiers, the Djamaa el-Djazair. The estimated US$1.4bn mosque is set to be the third largest in the world when completed in 2014. Seven groups have been prequalified to bid for the contract, after 15 applied in October. The client is Agènce Nationale de Réalisation et de Gestion de Djamaâ el-Djazaïr (Anargema).