Related Articles

• 
  Algeria extends bid deadline for stalled power plant

  30 April 2026

  Algeria’s state-owned electricity and gas utility Sonelgaz has extended a deadline for contractors to submit expressions of interest for the construction of the 1.2GW Djelfa combined-cycle power plant.

  The project is being procured through Sonelgaz’s power generation subsidiary, Societe Algerienne de l’Electricite et du Gaz – Production de l’Electricite (SPE).

  In March, MEED reported that the utility was seeking contractors to complete works at the existing Djelfa plant, including the remaining construction, the supply of missing equipment and the assessment of installed equipment.

  The original bid submission deadline for prequalification was 7 April. The new deadline is 5 May.

  The tender is open to both local and international companies, and will be conducted in three phases: prequalification, preliminary technical assessment, and final technical and financial submission.

  The retender follows earlier plans to complete the project through a Chinese consortium comprising China Energy Engineering Group Company, Northwest Electric Power Design Institute and Anhui Electric Power Construction Company.

  This proposal was made after Spanish contractor Duro Felguera halted work on the project in June 2024. 

  According to MEED Projects, construction works had progressed to 72% at the time of the suspension.

  It is understood that an agreement in principle was then reached to transfer the remaining works to the Chinese group after the Spanish firm entered a pre-bankruptcy phase in December 2024.

  A company statement at the time said: “The Chinese group is committed to completing the plant construction, with commissioning scheduled to start in the ninth month following the final agreement.”

  However, in October 2025, it was revealed that the attempt to transfer the project to a consortium of Chinese companies had failed, leaving the Spanish firm with an official demand to pay €413m in compensation to Sonelgaz.

  This was revealed via a lengthy report containing a restructuring plan sent by Duro Felguera to creditors in Spain and the Madrid Financial Markets Authority.

  Gas-fired power plants

  Located in Djelfa province, the project remains a key part of Algeria’s power generation expansion plans.

  Sonelgaz has been seeking contractors to build a separate 1.2GW combined-cycle gas-fired power plant in Aldrar since last April.

  The most recent deadline extension was 29 April.

  According to recent reports, Algeria has also begun construction of a power generation plant in El-Aouinet, with a total installed capacity of 1,406MW.

  The combined-cycle gas turbine plant is being developed in partnership with China National Electric Engineering Company.

  Gas-fired combined-cycle plants continue to account for the majority of Algeria’s electricity generation capacity. Data from MEED Projects indicates that more than 5,000MW of oil- and gas-fired power capacity is currently in the execution phase.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16623787/main.jpg

  Mark Dowdall
• 
  Dewa announces new record for power reliability

  30 April 2026

  Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (Dewa) has announced that it set a new world record for the lowest electricity customer minutes lost (CML), at 0.82 minutes a year in 2025.

  The figure is equivalent to about 49 seconds of annual outage per customer. It improves on the utility’s previous record of 0.94 minutes in 2024, a reduction of around 13%.

  Dewa said it has reduced CML in Dubai from 6.88 minutes a year in 2012 to 0.82 minutes in 2025, significantly lower than the average of about 15 minutes recorded by leading electricity utilities in the European Union.

  The smart grid is a central component of Dewa’s strategy to improve reliability and efficiency. The programme is being implemented with total investments of AED7bn up to 2035.

  One of the key initiatives of the programme is the Automatic Smart Grid Restoration System, which enables remote, round-the-clock control and monitoring.

  Dewa currently has tenders out for several power and water infrastructure projects in the emirate. These include at least four Glass Reinforced Epoxy (GRE) water transmission pipeline projects.

  According to regional projects tracker MEED Projects, Dewa awarded $1.1bn-worth of new power and water contracts in 2025. Contract awards had previously reached $2.6bn in 2024, and $4bn in 2024.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16623721/main.jpg

  Mark Dowdall
• 
  Riyadh tenders PMC deal for major sports arena

  30 April 2026

  

   

  Saudi Arabia’s Sports Boulevard Foundation has tendered a contract inviting firms to bid for project management consultancy (PMC) services for the Global Sports Tower in the Athletics District of the Sports Boulevard development in Riyadh.

  The tender was issued on 8 April, with a bid submission deadline of 10 May.

  The 130-metre-tall Global Sports Tower will cover an area of 84,000 square metres and will include more than 30 sports facilities. The tower will feature the world’s tallest indoor climbing wall at 98 metres and a 250-metre running track.

  Earlier this week, MEED reported that the Sports Boulevard Foundation is preparing to award the main construction contract for the Global Sports Tower. MEED understands that bid evaluation has reached an advanced stage and the contract is likely to be awarded by the end of May.

  MEED reported in May last year that design work on the tower had been completed. Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud approved the designs in 2024.

  The Sports Boulevard development runs across Riyadh from east to west and, once complete, is set to be the world’s longest park spanning more than 135 kilometres.

  The development will be spread across several districts, including Wadi Hanifah, Arts, Urban Wadi, Entertainment, Athletics and Eco, as well as Sands Sports Park.

  The large-scale project aims to transform central Riyadh – currently dominated by major highways – into a recreational corridor.

  Sports Boulevard, which will feature 4.4 million sq m of public realm and landmark buildings, will also be home to the Centre for Cinematic Arts and a 2,000-seat amphitheatre.

  The development will provide more than 2.3 million sq m of mixed-use commercial, residential, and retail assets, along with sports facilities around the park, known as Linear Park.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16622287/main.jpeg

  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Contractors submit Saudi Arabia phosphate rail track bids

  30 April 2026

  

   

  Saudi Arabian Railways (SAR) received bids from contractors on 27 April for a multibillion-riyal tender to double the tracks on the existing phosphate transport railway network connecting the Waad Al-Shamal mines to Ras Al-Khair in the kingdom’s Eastern Province.

  The tender – covering the second section of the track-doubling works and spanning more than 150 kilometres (km) – was issued on 9 February.

  This follows SAR receiving bids on 1 February for the project’s first phase, which spans about 100km from the AZ1/Nariyah Yard to Ras Al-Khair.

  The scope includes track doubling, alignment modifications, new utility bridges, culvert widening and hydrological structures, as well as the conversion of the AZ1 siding into a mainline track. It also includes support for signalling and telecommunications systems.

  The tender notice was issued in late November.

  Switzerland-based engineering firm ARX is the project consultant.

  MEED understands that these two packages are the first of four that SAR is expected to tender for the phosphate railway line. Other packages anticipated to be tendered shortly include the depot and systems packages.

  In 2023, MEED reported that SAR was planning two projects to increase its freight capacity, including an estimated SR4.2bn ($1.1bn) project to install a second track along the North Train Freight Line and construct three new freight yards.

  Formerly known as the North-South Railway, the North Train is a 1,550km-long freight line running from the phosphate and bauxite mines in the far north of the kingdom to the Al-Baithah junction. There, it diverges into a line southward to Riyadh and a second line running east to downstream fertiliser production and alumina refining facilities at Ras Al-Khair on the Gulf coast.

  Adding a second track and the freight yards will significantly increase the network’s cargo-carrying capacity and facilitate increased industrial production. Project implementation is expected to take four years.

  State-owned SAR is also considering increasing the localisation of railway materials and equipment, including the construction of a cement sleeper manufacturing facility.

  

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16622526/main.jpg

  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Iraq sets up commission for $5bn pipeline project

  30 April 2026

  Iraq is setting up a high-level commission to oversee the development of the planned $5bn Basra-Haditha crude oil pipeline project.

  The decision was made at a meeting held on 26 April, attended by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani and the Minister of Petroleum Hayyan Abdul Ghani Al-Sawad, as well as other officials and consultants.

  The commission will be chaired by the undersecretary of the Oil Ministry and include advisers to the prime minister, along with director-generals from the Oil Ministry and the Industry & Minerals Ministry.

  Al-Sudani said the pipeline project will increase flexibility in transporting crude oil to the Turkish port of Ceyhan, as well as the Syrian port of Baniyas and Jordan’s port of Aqaba.

  The pipeline is also expected to strengthen supply to refineries in central and northern Iraq and support higher domestic refining output.

  The meeting also approved allocating $1.5bn to the project this year, with funding provided through the Iraq-China oil-for-infrastructure mechanism, according to a statement issued by the Petroleum Ministry.

  Earlier this month, Iraq’s Council of Ministers approved amendments allowing the Oil Ministry to directly invite specialised companies to bid for the 685-kilometre pipeline.

  The pipeline is expected to have a capacity of up to 2.25 million barrels a day.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16621546/main.jpg

  Wil Crisp