Latest News

• 
  Saudi Arabia sets July deadline for Taif International airport

  Administrator

  7 July 2026

  

   

  Saudi Arabia’s Matarat Holding, in collaboration with the National Centre for Privatisation & PPP (NCP), has set a deadline of 24 July for a contract to develop the new Taif International airport project in Mecca Province.

  The client has opted for a 30-year build-transfer-operate (BTO) contract model, including the construction period.

  In January, MEED reported that four consortiums and one standalone company had been prequalified to proceed to the next stage of the bidding process.

  These were:

  • Kalyon Insaat / AlBawani (Turkiye/local)
  • Mada International Holding / TAV Airports (local/Turkiye)
  • Tamasuk / Bengaluru International Airport (local/India)
  • Vision Invest / Asyad / DAA International (local/local/Ireland)
  • GMR Airports (India)

  The new Taif International airport will be located 21 kilometres southeast of the existing Taif airport and will have a capacity of 2.5 million passengers by 2030.

  In addition to a new airport terminal, the proposed design features a runway with a full-length parallel taxiway connecting to a single commercial apron.

  The scope includes facility buildings, utility networks, car parks and access roads, as well as provisions for additional expansions to meet future subsystem requirements.

  The new airport is expected to meet the projected increase in demand by 2055 and contribute to the economic development of the city of Taif and its surrounding areas, in line with the kingdom’s National Aviation Strategy.

  It is also expected to meet the needs of Umrah pilgrims, as an alternative within the region’s multi-airport system, which includes King Abdulaziz airport in Jeddah, Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz airport in Medina and Prince Abdulmohsen Bin Abdulaziz airport in Yanbu.

  Previous tenders

  The Taif, Hail and Qassim airport schemes were previously tendered and awarded as public-private partnership (PPP) projects using the BTO model.

  Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (Gaca) awarded the contracts to develop four airport PPP projects to two separate consortiums in 2017.

  A team of Turkiye’s TAV Airports and the local Al-Rajhi Holding Group won the 30-year concession agreement to build, transfer and operate airport passenger terminals in Yanbu, Qassim and Hail.

  A second team, comprising Lebanon’s Consolidated Contractors Company, Germany’s Munich Airport International and local firm Asyad Group, won the BTO contract to develop Taif International airport.

  However, these projects stalled following the restructuring of the kingdom’s aviation sector.

  Saudi Arabia has already privatised airports including the $1.2bn Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz International airport in Medina, which was developed as a PPP and opened in 2015.

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  READ THE JULY 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

  Stress test for Gulf aviation; Mixed performance as country outlooks diverge in the Levant; GCC tourism sector pivots from crisis to recovery mode.

  Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the July 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

  > AGENDA: Gulf aviation ambitions face uncertain future > AIRPORTS: Dubai and Riyadh reaffirm airport ambitions > MARKET FOCUS: Levant recovers in three speeds  > INDUSTRY REPORT: Dubai eyes tourism sector recovery > INTERVIEW: EtihadWE prepares roadmap for future projects  > PROJECTS MARKET: Mena project momentum holds despite conflict  > DATA CENTRES: Big Tech falls short on data centre promise > SAVINGS: Retirement creates multibillion-dollar opportunity for region   > LEADERSHIP: Aramco’s citizen developers accelerate digital change

  To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here

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  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  KBR wins Iraq pipeline contract

  Administrator

  7 July 2026

  US-based KBR has been awarded a consultancy contract for a planned pipeline project that will extend from Basra in the south of Iraq to Haditha in Al-Anbar Governorate.

  Iraq’s cabinet, which met under Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi, has approved the award, according to a cabinet statement.

  State-owned Basra Oil Company (BOC), which manages the majority of Iraq’s southern oil fields, is now expected to sign a contract with KBR for the project.

  In April, Iraq announced the allocation of $1.5bn for the project, which is part of a larger scheme, estimated to be worth $5bn.

  The wider project includes additional pipeline links that will extend to Kirkuk in Northern Iraq and to Jordan.

  Earlier in July, Iraq's cabinet approved BOC signing a ​heads of agreement and a non-disclosure agreement with a consortium of companies to explore possible future oil pipeline projects, including the Basra-Haditha connection.

  The consortium includes US-based companies Chevron and TI Capital, as well as Qatar’s UCC.

  The consortium will prepare technical and financial feasibility studies for strategic export pipeline projects, according to a statement from Iraq’s cabinet.

  In June, Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi and US Special Presidential Envoy Tom Barrack agreed to advance the memorandum of understanding with TI Capital to rehabilitate a disused pipeline that extends from Kirkuk to Baniyas in Syria.

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  READ THE JULY 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

  Stress test for Gulf aviation; Mixed performance as country outlooks diverge in the Levant; GCC tourism sector pivots from crisis to recovery mode.

  Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the July 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

  > AGENDA: Gulf aviation ambitions face uncertain future > AIRPORTS: Dubai and Riyadh reaffirm airport ambitions > MARKET FOCUS: Levant recovers in three speeds  > INDUSTRY REPORT: Dubai eyes tourism sector recovery > INTERVIEW: EtihadWE prepares roadmap for future projects  > PROJECTS MARKET: Mena project momentum holds despite conflict  > DATA CENTRES: Big Tech falls short on data centre promise > SAVINGS: Retirement creates multibillion-dollar opportunity for region   > LEADERSHIP: Aramco’s citizen developers accelerate digital change

  To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/17570453/main.jpg

  Wil Crisp
• 
  Oman outlines grid plan for four 1GW solar IPPs

  Administrator

  7 July 2026

  The Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC) has outlined the planned grid connection schedule for four 1GW solar independent power projects (IPPs) that will support the sultanate's renewable energy expansion through 2030.

  The projects are detailed in OETC's Five-Year Annual Transmission Capability Statement (2026-30), which sets out the transmission infrastructure required to integrate new generation capacity into the national grid.

  According to the report, the first of the four gigawatt-scale projects, the Adam solar IPP, is scheduled for integration in 2028.

  Oman’s Nama Power & Water Procurement Company (Nama PWP) issued a request for qualification for the development of the Adam solar IPP in June.

  OETC said it expects the 1GW Al-Kamil 2 solar project to be integrated in 2030 through the planned Sadaf 400kV grid station. The 1GW Dhofar solar IPP and 1GW Mahadha solar IPP are also scheduled for integration in 2030.

  Before the gigawatt-scale projects are connected, several smaller utility-scale solar schemes are expected to enter service.

  The first is the 500MW Ibri 3 solar project, supported by the Al-Sebkha 400kV switching station. Construction began on Ibri 3 in January.

  The report says this will be followed by the Al-Kamil 1, Sinaw and Marsa solar IPPs.

  The power purchase agreement for the 500MW Al-Kamil IPP was recently signed by a separate consortium comprising France's EDF Power Solutions, Oman National Engineering & Investment Company and the local OQ Alternative Energy.

  Nama PWP has issued a supervisory consultancy tender for the 280MW Marsa IPP in North Al-Batinah Governorate, with a bid submission deadline of 26 July.

  The transmission statement says about 70 transmission projects are expected to enter service between 2026 and 2030.

  The programme is intended to increase transmission capacity, connect new renewable generation, strengthen grid reliability and support electricity demand growth across the sultanate.

  ---

  READ THE JULY 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

  Stress test for Gulf aviation; Mixed performance as country outlooks diverge in the Levant; GCC tourism sector pivots from crisis to recovery mode.

  Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the July 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

  > AGENDA: Gulf aviation ambitions face uncertain future > AIRPORTS: Dubai and Riyadh reaffirm airport ambitions > MARKET FOCUS: Levant recovers in three speeds  > INDUSTRY REPORT: Dubai eyes tourism sector recovery > INTERVIEW: EtihadWE prepares roadmap for future projects  > PROJECTS MARKET: Mena project momentum holds despite conflict  > DATA CENTRES: Big Tech falls short on data centre promise > SAVINGS: Retirement creates multibillion-dollar opportunity for region   > LEADERSHIP: Aramco’s citizen developers accelerate digital change

  To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/17564537/main.jpg

  Mark Dowdall
• 
  Frontrunner emerges for Bahrain’s Al-Hidd IWP

  Administrator

  6 July 2026

  

   

  Saudi Arabia's Acwa has emerged as the frontrunner for a contract to develop and operate Bahrain’s Al-Hidd independent water project (IWP) following the disqualification of the only other bidder for the plant, a source has told MEED.

  The seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) plant is the state's first IWP project. It is expected to have a production capacity of about 60 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD), equivalent to roughly 272,000 cubic metres a day of potable water.

  Acwa offered to develop the project at a levelised cost of water of BD0.276 ($0.73) a cubic metre, according to details published on Bahrain’s Tender Board on 2 July.

  GS Inima (South Korea/Spain) was the only other bidder for the project.

  Bids for the project had been submitted earlier this year.

  The source added that Acwa's financial bid is now under evaluation and has yet to be selected as the preferred bidder. This will only be determined "subject to compliance with the [request for proposal] requirements".

  Nine companies and consortiums had previously been shortlisted following the completion of the prequalification process last August.

  The facility will be developed on a brownfield site and is expected to be fully operational by 2029. It will be developed using a build, own and operate (BOO) model for 20-25 years and aims to help expand Bahrain’s water infrastructure to meet projected demand based on its 2030 masterplan.

  This includes doubling the state's installed power generation capacity to over 10GW by 2030, according to UK data analytics firm GlobalData.

  Sitra IWPP

  Bahrain's 1.2GW Sitra independent water and power plant (IWPP) project is also advancing, with two bids having been submitted for the plant in June.

  The offers were made by Acwa and Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa). The technical element of the bid was opened on 18 June.

  The Sitra IWPP is a combined-cycle gas turbine plant and is expected to have a production capacity of about 1,200MW of electricity. The project’s SWRO desalination facility will have a production capacity of 30 MIGD of potable water.

  The plant is Bahrain’s fourth IWPP, replacing the previously planned Al-Dur 3. The Sitra IWPP is expected to be fully operational by the second quarter of 2029.

  The Bahraini Electricity & Water Authority’s transaction advisory team for the two BOO projects comprises KPMG Fakhro as the financial consultant and Trowers & Hamlins as the legal consultant.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/17562089/main.jpg

  Mark Dowdall
• 
  Contractor begins Burj Khalifa metro station expansion works

  Administrator

  6 July 2026

  

   

  Dubai’s Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) has started construction on the expansion and upgrade of the Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall metro station.

  The main construction works are being carried out by Turkish contractor Mapa Group.

  The RTA also announced that it is temporarily closing its bus and taxi service road at the metro station due to ongoing construction works, until the end of this year.

  The contract was tendered in January 2025, as MEED exclusively reported.

  The design-and-build contract covers the lift and station expansion works, including demolishing and replacing the existing pod entrance with a three-storey building. The new entrance will provide links to the Dubai Mall link bridge at the concourse level and a direct connection to the Rashidya platform.

  The project will add three new hydraulic lifts and four escalators. The concourse level will be expanded to include a connection to the link bridge and 10 new retail units.

  The project will also add two new hydraulic lifts and escalators within the Sheikh Zayed roadside extension serving the UAE Exchange platform.

  The Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall station expansion was first tendered as part of the RTA’s plan to upgrade four Dubai Metro stations in 2018.

  Subsequently, the expansion works on the station were put on hold, whereas construction on the Damac, UAE Exchange and Dubai Internet City stations was completed in 2021.

  Local firm Al-Shafar General Contracting undertook the expansion works.

  Traffic at the Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall station peaks on New Year’s Eve. In an official statement published by Emirates News Agency, the RTA said that last New Year’s Eve, Dubai Metro accommodated over 1 million passengers on its Red and Green lines, while the Dubai Tram transported 55,391 passengers.

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  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Morocco tenders 300MW El-Menzel pumped-storage plant

  Administrator

  6 July 2026

  Morocco's Office National de l'Electricité et de l'Eau Potable (Onee) has tendered the main engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the 300MW El-Menzel pumped-storage hydropower project.

  The bid submission deadline is 30 September.

  The El-Menzel pumped energy transfer station will be developed in the Sefrou area of Morocco's Fes-Boulemane region. The project is intended to support Morocco's renewable energy programme and contribute to the country's target of sourcing 52% of its energy mix from renewables by 2030.

  The project scope comprises upper and lower reservoirs, a 400kV substation and a 44-kilometre (km) transmission line. It also inlcudes the construction of 10km of access roads and associated facilities. The project is estimated to cost $244m.

  According to regional project tracker MEED Projects, three consortiums prequalified to bid for the EPC contract last year.

  They were:

  • China International Water & Electric, Yellow River Engineering Consulting (China), Harbin Electric Machinery (China), Harbin Electric International (China) and Jet Contractors (Morocco)
  • Sinohydro (China) and Andritz Hydro (Austria)
  • Webuild (Italy) and Dongfang Electric International Corporation (China)

  The project is being financed by the African Development Bank and Germany's KfW Development Bank.

  Morocco's renewable energy plans received a boost recently, when the World Bank approved $265m in financing for a separate 300MW pumped hydropower storage project in Ifahsa in Chefchaouen Province.

  The facility will act as a rechargeable battery for the national electricity grid, storing excess electricity generated from solar and wind projects before releasing it during periods of peak demand.

  The Ifahsa and El-Menzel projects are both being developed by Onee as part of a broader energy storage strategy that  targets 1GW of new pumped hydropower by 2030. 

  Onee commissioned the 350MW Abdelmoumen pumped-storage plant in 2024.

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  Mark Dowdall
• 
  Iraq readies tender for additional Al-Faw port piers

  Administrator

  6 July 2026

  Iraq is preparing to issue a tender inviting international contractors to bid for a contract to build the remaining piers at Al-Faw Grand Port in Basra.

  According to local media reports, construction work on the project's first phase is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

  This will be followed by port operations, for which the client, state-owned General Company for Ports of Iraq, shortlisted three out of the initial 11 international companies that were invited to bid, as MEED reported last year.

  At the time, the shortlisted companies included:

  • China Merchants Port Group (China)
  • Evergreen (Taiwan)
  • CMA CGM (France)
  • Mediterranean Shipping Company (Switzerland)
  • Adani Group (India)
  • International Container Terminal Services (Philippines)
  • Cosco (China) 
  • ABM Global Shipping (UAE)
  • AD Ports (UAE)

  In April last year, Iraq’s Shafaq News Agency reported that the country was in talks with US-based KBR to assist in operating the Al-Faw port.

  KBR was expected to provide training in port operations and management to Iraqi personnel, along with related services.

  The first phase of the project is scheduled for completion by the end of this year, while the second phase is expected to be completed by 2029.

  The first phase of the project cost approximately $5bn, including $2.5bn for its five main piers, which were constructed by South Korea’s Daewoo Engineering & Construction.

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  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Chinese contractor completes 70% of Iraq oil project

  Administrator

  6 July 2026

  

   

  The project to develop new crude oil processing facilities at Iraq’s Rumaila field is 70% complete, according to industry sources.

  The project scope for the planned plant in Mishrif Qurainat includes developing two new oil trains, each with a capacity of 120,000 barrels a day (b/d).

  When it was originally announced, the planned plant in Mishrif Qurainat was the first new crude oil processing facility project at the oil field in 10 years.

  In the fourth quarter of 2022, China Petroleum Engineering & Construction Corporation signed a contract for the design, procurement, construction and testing of the crude oil processing facilities.

  The contract was valued at about $386m, and construction was expected to take three years to complete.

  Since 2022, the project has seen significant delays and the date for completion is currently uncertain, according to industry sources, as bringing the new crude processing facility online is no longer a priority for the client.

  One source said: “Work is continuing on this project at a slow pace because the client is not prioritising commissioning the oil trains.

  “The companies that form the joint venture, which operates the Rumaila field, are dealing with a range of other issues right now as a result of the regional war and disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.”

  Rumaila is operated by Rumaila Operating Organisation (ROO).

  ROO is a joint venture formed by state-owned Basra Oil Company; Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organisation (Somo); and Basra Energy Company, a joint venture owned by UK-based oil company BP and PetroChina.

  PetroChina is the listed arm of state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation.

  Oil exports from Iraq have dropped steeply since the US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February, leading to a regional conflict.

  The conflict has caused significant disruption to Iraq’s oil exports via the Strait of Hormuz.

  This has had a knock-on impact for production in the country, where output from many major oil fields has had to stop or has been significantly lowered.

  One source said: “At the moment, Basra Oil Company is prioritising restoring production, where it is possible, from assets that have seen reductions in output.

  “They are using a lot of resources just to keep existing facilities online and restarting facilities that have stopped due to the crisis.

  “Commissioning a brand new project, like the Mishrif Qurainat facilities, is unlikely to be a priority until Iraq’s oil sector returns to a situation that is more like business as usual prior to the conflict with Iran.”

  Rumaila is the ‎second-largest producing field in the world, and it is estimated to have about 17 billion barrels of ‎recoverable oil remaining.‎

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  Wil Crisp