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GCC pushes PPPs to deliver $70bn pipeline

29 September 2025

 

This package also includes: A new dawn for PPPs

GCC governments are increasingly turning to public-private partnerships to deliver strategic projects off-balance sheet, driving a surge in PPP tendering across the region. 

According to data from regional project tracker MEED Projects, the value of PPP schemes tendered in 2025 stood at over $4bn as of 31 August, already equal to the full-year figure for 2024. 

Several billions of dollars’ worth of projects are still expected to be floated in the last four months of this year as governments look to implement PPP schemes beyond the conventional sectors of power, water and pipelines.

In September, for instance, Riyadh tendered the $2.5bn Aseer-Jizan highway. The project is one of four planned highway schemes in the kingdom’s privatisation and PPP pipeline.

In the long term, PPP activity in the region is poised for continued growth. A total pipeline of $70bn-worth of PPP projects will provide opportunities for contractors and financiers for years to come.

PPP leaders 

Saudi Arabia is leading the region’s shift to PPPs. Since 2021, the kingdom has awarded over $12.5bn of PPP contracts as it strives to deliver its large-scale projects without relying fully on government budgets. 

Major Saudi PPP schemes include Neom’s $5.6bn housing deals for worker accommodation, the redevelopment of Medina airport and, most recently, the signing of SR2.2bn ($586m) of agreements by Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) for the privatisation of cargo terminals at eight ports. 

Riyadh’s PPP drive is being led by the National Centre for Privatisation & PPP, which oversees a portfolio of hundreds of projects across 16 sectors. This includes about $47bn of PPPs in the construction and infrastructure sectors, including an upgrade of a new passenger terminal building at Abha International airport and several sports stadiums that are required for the 2034 Fifa World Cup.

Meanwhile, the UAE has also committed to boosting private sector participation in infrastructure projects. 

In Abu Dhabi, the Zayed City schools scheme was the first project to move forward when a new federal PPP law was introduced in 2022. Since then, schemes such as a 2023 road lighting project and a scheme in 2024 to develop student accommodation at Khalifa University have been implemented as PPPs.

In April, Abu Dhabi established a platform called Gridora to support private and PPP entities in delivering infrastructure developments. The following month, Gridora signed a memorandum of understanding with the Abu Dhabi Projects & Infrastructure Centre to deliver transport infrastructure projects worth over AED35bn ($9.5bn).

Dubai’s Department of Finance is also ramping up infrastructure PPPs, with 17 projects worth over AED5bn ($1.36) under way, on top of major power and water sector schemes. In 2023, the city launched its DP3 platform to streamline PPP planning and delivery.

A total pipeline of $70bn-worth of PPP projects will provide opportunities … for years to come

Regional PPP growth

Elsewhere in the GCC, construction and infrastructure sector PPPs are still in the early stages, but opportunities are emerging. 

Bahrain’s PPP pipeline sits at just over $8bn and includes the country’s long-standing metro project. The estimated $6bn scheme is part of Bahrain’s Public Transport Masterplan 2030 and involves the construction of a 184-kilometre monorail system, which is expected to be implemented in four phases.

Kuwait is also deploying the PPP model for the delivery of key infrastructure, most notably for the next phases of Mubarak Al-Kabeer port, with China Harbour Engineering Company signing an early contractor involvement agreement in May. Additionally, the government has initiated a 90-project pipeline to stimulate PPP investment in various sectors.

Oman, meanwhile, launched its PPP programme in 2021 after the promulgation of its PPP law in 2019. At the time, it was understood to include 49 projects in the education, healthcare, logistics and utilities sectors. 

In 2023, the tender of the Salalah-Thumrait truck road was launched, the sultanate’s first road project to be implemented under a PPP model.

Last year, Petroleum Development Oman also tendered the Manazil PPP project, which will provide staff accommodation facilities within its Block 6 hydrocarbons concession.

Tendering is also progressing on the Oman Business Gateway PPP project to develop a new headquarters for the Commerce, Industry & Investment Promotion Ministry in Muscat.

Finally, in Qatar, the country’s PPP law, issued on 31 May 2020, provides the legal framework for private sector participation in infrastructure projects that support the goals of National Vision 2030.

Last year, a PPP contract to develop 14 schools was awarded to local firm Urbacon Trading & Contracting Company. The PPP market then gained fresh momentum this year when Ashghal, Qatar’s Public Works Authority, issued a tender for consultants to support its long-term plan for delivering public infrastructure through PPP projects.

Under this plan, a diverse set of projects have been earmarked for procurement, including phase two of the National Housing Subdivision Development project, Al-Khor Equestrian City, sewage treatment facilities, a cancer hospital and Doha’s long-awaited Sharq Crossing project. 

Tendering is also under way for a PPP project to develop Doha’s West Bay Waterfront mixed-use district.

These initiatives reflect the wider GCC trend, as regional governments turn to PPPs to deliver major infrastructure, mobilise private investment, and drive long-term urban and economic growth.

A new dawn for PPPs

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Yasir Iqbal

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