A WROUGHTON firm is hoping to build an underground railway in Iraq. The multi-million pound scheme would be modelled on Britain's high-tech Metro system.

Thousands of commuters in Iraq's capital, Baghdad, could use the system.

Construction firm Halcrow, which has its headquarters in Wroughton, is hot favourite to land the prized contract.

The firm has had a presence in war-torn Iraq since May 2003 and has provided men and machinery in several regions of the country.

The British Metro Consultants Group first raised plans for the railway in the 1980s.

But they were shelved when Iraq declared war on neighbours Iran.

Former president Saddam Hussein chose to channel money into the war rather than the railway and the scheme was put on the back burner.

Now, Halcrow bosses are seeking to re-spark interest in the railway.

Spokesman Rab Brown, the firm's director for Iraq, said: "The scheme was abandoned in the 1980s as the Iraqi government diverted funding to finance the country's ongoing war with neighbouring Iran.

"Despite this, it is thought that a number of underground stations were built before the project was abandoned.

"During the immediate post-conflict Iraq reconstruction focus in 2003, Halcrow revisited its archives and has now been asked to look at the potential for building the project.

"A lot of detailed design work was done. At least 60 per cent is there sitting on a shelf waiting to be used.

"We hope to be awarded a contract to review the work, which we hope will then lead to a contract to develop the scheme so it can be built."

Mr Brown said advancements in technology since the 1980s alleviate some of the hard graft.

"The good thing is the technology has moved on since then so we should be able to build the project quicker and better than the earlier group could have expected."

In 2004, Halcrow completed the refurbishment of government buildings in Nasiriyah, Amarah and Samawah.

The firm has also been involved in the repair of infrastructure in Saddam's home town of Tikrit.

Halcrow's 5,700 employees operate from a network of more than 70 offices worldwide.