Local construction firm Nan Inc. has been awarded a key $400 million contract to relocate utilities along the city center portion of Honolulu’s East Kapolei-­to-Ala Moana Center rail line, the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation said Monday in a news release.

The “indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity,” or IDIQ, contract calls for the contractor to perform a series of utility relocation task orders from HART in the 4.1-mile area between Middle Street and Ala Moana Center. Eight rail stations are planned within the segment that runs through Kalihi, Iwilei, downtown Honolulu and Kakaako.

“This work will progress ahead of future guideway and station construction, and clear the path for that work,” HART Executive Director and CEO Anthony Robbins said.

The guideway and stations construction work for that section of the line will be through a separate contract yet to be awarded.

This is Nan’s fourth, and most expensive, project contract for the embattled $9 billion rail project.

In August 2014 Nan was awarded the contract for the Airport Section Utilities Relocation Contract for a significantly lower $28 million. That project was completed in 2016.

The latest project involves all of the utilities in the town segment, which is also the section of the route with the most utilities, HART spokesman Bill Brennan said. Nan also won a contract in July 2015 to build three West Oahu stations — at Hoopili, East Kapolei and UH West Oahu — after it submitted a low bid of $56 million.

In December 2015 Nan won the contract for construction of three rail stations along the Kamehameha Highway section with a bid of $116 million. The three stations are at Pearl Highlands, Pearlridge and Aloha Stadium.