meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

EPC teams start forming for $22bn Dubai tunnels

24 September 2024

Register for MEED's 14-day trial access 

Some prequalified engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) companies for the contracts to develop and operate various packages of the $22bn Dubai Strategic Sewerage Tunnels (DSST) project have started forming teams in anticipation of the next stage of the tendering process.    

In August, Dubai Municipality prequalified 21 companies and consortiums that can bid for three packages known as J1, J2 and W, and 19 for a fourth package known as J3, of the six-package project.

Some companies are in the process of finalising their partners, while at least one has said it does not intend to tap a partner.

While the country of origin is expected to play a role in the formation of teams, it is expected that the complementarity of the companies' expertise and resources will be crucial in the selection process.  

The client and its advisers have opted to prequalify EPC contractors ahead of investors in a departure from the classic public-private partnership (PPP) procurement process.

"The idea is to issue the technical information pack to the prequalified EPC contractors before the prequalification process for investors starts, allowing EPC contractors time to undertake the design process," a source familiar with the project recently told MEED.

He added: "These designs should be ready once Dubai Municipality completes the prequalification process for investors, saving roughly three months compared to the usual route, where the prequalification processes for developers and EPC contractors are done simultaneously."

The staggered prequalification process is expected to help ensure the request for proposals process takes about six months rather than the typical nine months.

Six packages

Under the current plan, the $22bn DSST project is broken down into six packages, which will be tendered as PPP packages with concession periods lasting between 25 and 35 years.

The first package, J1, comprises Jebel Ali tunnels (North) and terminal pump stations (TPS). The tunnels will extend approximately 42 kilometres, and the links will extend 10 kilometres (km). 

The second package, J2, covers the southern section of the Jebel Ali tunnels, which will extend 16km and have a link stretching 46km.

W for Warsan, the third package, comprises 16km of tunnels, TPS and 46km of links.

J3, the fourth package, comprises 129km of links.

J1, J2 and W will be procured under a design-build-finance-operate-maintain model with a concession period of 25-35 years.

J3 will be procured under a design-build-finance model with a concession period of 25-35 years. Once completed, Dubai Municipality will operate them, unlike the first three packages, which are planned to be operated and maintained by the winning PPP contractors.

J1, J2, W and J3 will comprise the deep sewerage tunnels, links and TPS (DLT) components of the overall project.

The project’s remaining two packages entail the expansion and upgrade of the Jebel Ali and Warsan sewage treatment plants (STPs), and will be procured in a process separate from the four DSST-DLT components.

Prequalified EPC contractors  

The prequalified EPC companies for packages J1, J2 and W are:

  • Acciona Construccion (Spain) – Dubai branch
  • Besix Construct (Belgium)
  • China Harbour Engineering (China)
  • China Railway Group (China)
  • China State Construction Engineering Corporation (China)
  • Daewoo Engineering & Construction (South Korea) 
  • Dogus Insaat VE Ticaret Anonim Sirketi (Turkiye) – Abu Dhabi
  • FCC Construcccion (Spain)
  • Archirodon Construction (Overseas) Company (Greece) / BESSAC (France)
  • China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation – Dubai Branch / Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Company (STEC) / China Railway 14th Bureau Group Corporation 
  • Gulermak Agir Sanayi Insaat (Turkiye) / DETech Contracting (local)
  • National Marine Dredging Company (local) / Afcons Infrastructure (India) / ITD Cementation India 
  • The Arab Contractors (Osman Ahmed Osman & Company, Egypt) / Darwish Engineering Emirates (local) / AqualiaMACE Contracting Operation & General Maintenance (local)
  • Larsen & Toubro (India)
  • Porr (Austria)
  • Power Construction Corporation of China (China) – Dubai branch
  • Samsung C&T Corporation (South Korea) – Dubai Branch
  • SK Ecoplant (South Korea) 
  • Strabag Dubai (Austria)
  • The Petroleum Projects & Technical Consultation Company (Petrojet) – Egypt
  • Webuild  (Italy)

EPC companies that have been prequalified for package J3 are:

  • Acciona Construccion (Spain) – Dubai branch
  • Alghanim International General Trading & Contracting (Kuwait) 
  • China Railway Group (China)
  • China State Construction Engineering Corporation (China)
  • Daewoo Engineering & Construction (South Korea)
  • DETech Contracting
  • Archirodon Construction (Overseas) Company (Greece) / BESSAC (France)
  • China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (China) – Dubai branch / Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Company (STEC) / China Railway 14th Bureau Group Corporation 
  • Gulermak Agir Sanayi Insaat (Turkiye) / DETech Contracting (local) 
  • International Foundation Group (IFG, local) / General Construction Company (local)
  • Nael Construction & Contracting (UAE) / Concord for Engineering & Contracting (Egypt) – Dubai branch
  • National Marine Dredging Company (local) / Afcons Infrastructure (India) / ITD Cementation India 
  • Mapa Insaat Ve Ticaret (Turkiye)
  • Mohammed Abdulmohsin Al-Kharafi & Sons (Kuwait)
  • Porr (Austria)
  • Power Construction Corporation of China – Dubai branch
  • Strabag (Austria)
  • Tecton Engineering & Construction (local)
  • The Petroleum Projects & Technical Consultation Company – Petrojet (Egypt)
Market-sounding

Dubai Municipality is expected to hold a market-sounding event for investors, MEED reported in early September .

The event is set to take place during the first week of October, a few weeks before interested investors submit their statements of qualifications (SOQ) for the projects' various packages.

MEED previously reported that the client had extended the SOQ submission deadline from 5 September to 21 October.

 Gravity system project

The DSST project aims to convert Dubai’s existing sewerage system from a pumped system to a gravity system by decommissioning the existing pump stations and providing “a sustainable, innovative, reliable service for future generations”.

Dubai currently has two major sewerage catchments. The first in Deira is Warsan, where the Warsan STP treats the flow.

The second catchment is in Bur Dubai, where the wastewater is treated at the Jebel Ali STP.

According to a source close to the project, the DSST will replace 120 pump stations, saving approximately 100 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually. 

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/12590337/main0016.jpg
Jennifer Aguinaldo

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Neom’s industrial pivot gathers pace

    1 October 2026

    Commentary
    Colin Foreman
    Editor

    Reprioritisation has been the buzzword in Saudi Arabia over the past two years and nowhere has that been more evident than at Neom. 

    The slowdown of development at The Line and the postponement of the 2029 Asian Winter Games at Trojena have dominated international headlines. As these projects scale back, Oxagon’s industrial and logistics base has become the $500bn gigaproject’s flagship development. There are tangible results: in August, the $8.5bn Neom Green Hydrogen project was commissioned, marking Neom’s most significant completion to date. 

    Construction activity elsewhere at Oxagon supports this trend. The AI data-centre campus being developed by Humain and DataVolt has broken ground on its first 100MW phase, backed by $5bn of investment and targeted for service in 2028. Neom has issued an expression of interest for a rail line linking the Port of Neom to Saudi Arabia Railways’ North-South network, tenders are out for an industrial wastewater plant and the upgrade of Highway 55, and the port itself is advancing towards a 2030 capacity target of 1.5 million TEUs. 

    The regional conflict that began in February has strengthened the business case by giving Oxagon’s Red Sea port added strategic weight as a second maritime gateway outside the Strait of Hormuz, at a time when Riyadh has committed to directing about 80% of the Public Investment Fund’s portfolio into domestic investment.

    These developments reflect a kingdom recalibrating rather than retreating

    Elsewhere, Saudi Arabia’s wider projects market is holding steady despite conflict-related disruption, with contract awards reaching $68bn so far this year. The regional power market is also diversifying, with Aljomaih, EDF and Kepco all more than tripling net capacity in recent years as Acwa retains its lead.

    These developments reflect a kingdom recalibrating rather than retreating, with priority given to projects capable of delivering commercial returns.

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

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20178338/main.gif
    Colin Foreman
  • Contractor wins Dammam airport water infrastructure deal

    1 October 2026

    Saudi Arabia-based Alkhorayef Water & Power Technologies has won an SR80m ($21.3m) contract to rehabilitate water and wastewater infrastructure at King Fahd International airport in Dammam in the kingdom’s Eastern Province.

    The contract was awarded by Dammam Airports Company (DACO), and work is scheduled to be completed within 18 months, the firm said in a disclosure to the Saudi Exchange (Tadawul) on 29 September.

    The scope covers the design, construction, supply, installation, replacement, rehabilitation and integration of water and wastewater infrastructure.

    It includes pumps, storage tanks and reservoirs, reverse osmosis facilities, piping and tie-ins, as well as electrical and instrumentation works.

    The award comes as DACO advances a wider programme of investment at King Fahd International airport.

    DACO signed more than SR1.2bn ($320m) in agreements in June covering airport infrastructure, including a new power station, a medium-voltage distribution network and upgrades to the existing electrical grid. 

    In September, it also appointed WSP Middle East, the regional arm of Canadian engineering firm WSP, to develop the airport’s expansion under its masterplan.

    The expansion is intended to increase annual passenger capacity to more than 19.3 million by 2030, with a longer-term target of 32 million passengers. 

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20169118/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • Kuwait tenders LNG project

    1 October 2026

     

    State-owned Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (Kipic) has tendered a project to develop a reliquefaction unit at the Al-Zour liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal.

    The project focuses on developing a boil-off gas (BOG) unit at the terminal, with bids due on 22 December.

    A meeting for contractors to discuss the project is scheduled for 18 October.

    The project scope includes engineering, procurement and construction works, along with pre-commissioning, commissioning and performance testing services.

    The list of prequalified companies is:

    • Fluor (US)
    • GS Engineering & Construction (South Korea)
    • Tecnicas Reunidas (Spain)
    • Larsen & Toubro (India)
    • Hyundai Engineering (South Korea)
    • CTCI Corporation (Taiwan)
    • Daewoo Engineering & Construction (South Korea)
    • Hyundai Engineering & Construction (South Korea)
    • Saipem (Italy)
    • Samsung Engineering (South Korea)
    • Sinopec Engineering (China)
    • JGC Holdings (Japan)
    • KBR (US)
    • China National Petroleum Corporation (China)
    • Technip (France)

    A BOG unit at an LNG facility captures, compresses and processes natural gas vapours that evaporate from cryogenic storage tanks, enabling the gas to be recycled back into the system rather than flared.

    In April, MEED revealed that contractors expected the project to be worth about $200m.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20168625/main2005.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Riyadh approaches contractors for 2km tower

    1 October 2026

     

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has reached out to contractors as part of a market-sounding exercise for the construction of the proposed 2-kilometre megatall tower project.

    MEED understands that a PIF subsidiary, the Tower District Real Estate Development Company, is undertaking the process.

    It is understood that several experienced international contractors, as well as some prominent local contractors, have been approached.

    The latest development follows PIF receiving offers in June last year from firms seeking a contract to provide project management consultancy (PMC) services for a new central business district (CBD) on the outskirts of Riyadh, which includes the proposed 2km tower.

    The PMC role covers both the tower and the surrounding district.

    Firms understood to have been invited to bid include US-based Aecom, Jacobs, Parsons and Turner, as well as the UK’s Mace.

    UK-based Foster & Partners is working as the architect for the tower after winning a design competition launched in late 2022.

    Record breaker

    The proposed tower would be more than double the height of the world’s tallest building, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, which stands 828 metres tall. It is expected to be at least several hundred metres taller than the 1,000-metre-plus tower under construction in Jeddah.

    Contractors that have priced megatall towers in the region say a 2km-tall structure could cost about $5bn to construct, depending on the final design.

    The 2km tower and the surrounding CBD – known as Project Rise – sit within a larger masterplanned development to the north of Riyadh called the North Pole.

    MEED’s October 2026 report on Saudi Arabia includes:

    > COMMENT: Saudi projects hold steady
    > GOVERNMENT: Riyadh looks to reset its regional defence outlook
    > ECONOMY: Conflict bolsters case for Saudi economic diversification
    > BANKING: Saudi lenders readjust to lower lending and deposit climate
    > UPSTREAM: Aramco upstream spending gathers pace
    > DOWNSTREAM: Sabic steps up Saudi petchems investment
    > POWER: Saudi Arabia’s power award activity slows
    > WATER: Saudi water sector hits sharp slowdown
    > CONSTRUCTION: Saudi construction defies the headwinds
    > TRANSPORT: Saudi infrastructure pushes forward amid conflict
    > DATABANK: Saudi data indicates project spending shift

    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20156496/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Singapore’s Temasek plans Middle East expansion

    1 October 2026

    Singapore’s Temasek plans to open offices in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi early next year as it targets investment and partnership opportunities in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and the wider region.

    The state-owned investor had a net portfolio value of S$518bn ($401bn) as of 31 March 2026.

    It said the new offices will serve as regional hubs for Temasek and its portfolio companies, with some businesses expected to co-locate to work more closely with partners and pursue deals alongside the group. The openings are subject to regulatory approvals.

    Temasek said it will also step up engagement with institutions in Qatar, although it has not announced plans to establish an office there.

    The company said the expansion reflects its confidence in the region’s long-term fundamentals and the economic transformation being driven by national diversification programmes.

    It added that a presence in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi will also support investment activity beyond the region by improving access to opportunities across the wider Middle East, Central Asia and Africa.

    Several Temasek-owned or Temasek-backed companies are already active in the GCC, providing a platform for the group’s planned expansion.

    These include Singapore-headquartered engineering and consultancy firm Surbana Jurong, which has been involved in masterplanning and advisory work on major regional developments, alongside other portfolio companies with interests spanning infrastructure, logistics, financial services and technology.

    According to data from regional project tracker MEED Projects, Surbana Jurong is involved in several major projects in Saudi Arabia, including King Abdulaziz International airport (KAIA) in Jeddah, Jeddah Islamic Port, Red Sea Global’s Amaala masterplan, the Trojena dams scheme, Oxagon, King Salman International airport and Saudi Arabia Railway’s North-South Phosphate Railway 3.

    The firm has also worked on projects in the wider region, including the West Link project, Urban Loop, Musaffah Innovation District masterplan, Etihad Rail’s high-speed rail programme and Abu Dhabi airport’s Midfield Terminal.

    Surbana Jurong has also secured masterplanning contracts from Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities & Transport and Abu Dhabi Ports.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20157511/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal