Saudi Landbridge rail scheme to be delivered by 2034
21 January 2026
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Saudi Arabia Railways (SAR) has said that it will deliver the Saudi Landbridge project through a "new mechanism" by 2034, after failing to reach an agreement with a Chinese consortium for the construction of the project.
In an interview with local media, SAR CEO Bashar Bin Khalid Al-Malik said that the consortium failed to meet local content requirements, and the project will now be delivered in several phases through a different procurement model.
The project has been under negotiation between Saudi Arabia and China-backed investors keen to develop it on a public-private-partnership basis.
Al-Malik said that the project cost is about SR100bn ($26.6bn).
It comprises more than 1,500 kilometres (km) of new track. The core component is a 900km new railway between Riyadh and Jeddah, which will provide direct freight access to the capital from King Abdullah Port on the Red Sea.
Other key sections include upgrading the existing Riyadh-Dammam line, a bypass around the capital called the Riyadh Link, and a link between King Abdullah Port and Yanbu.
The Saudi Landbridge is one of the kingdom’s most anticipated project programmes. Plans to develop it were first announced in 2004, but put on hold in 2010 before being revived a year later. Key stumbling blocks were rights-of-way issues, route alignment and its high cost.
In April last year, MEED exclusively reported that SAR had issued a tender for the lead design consultancy services contract on the Saudi Landbridge railway network.
MEED understands that the scope covered the concept design and options for the preliminary and issued-for-construction design stages on the network.
MEED reported that the launch of a design tender directly by SAR suggested that Riyadh was looking at other options to develop it alongside the Chinese proposal.
In December 2023, MEED reported that a team of US-based Hill International, Italy’s Italferr and Spain’s Sener had been awarded the contract to provide project management services for the programme.
If it proceeds, the Saudi Landbridge will be one of the largest railway projects ever undertaken in the Middle East and one of the biggest globally. Based on typical design timeframes, tenders for construction are likely to be ready by mid-2026, although the question of how it will be financed will need to be answered before it can proceed to the next step.
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Modon tenders Ras El-Hekma construction contracts
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Abu Dhabi-based developer Modon Holding has tendered several contracts as part of the first phase of development at Ras El-Hekma, a planned new city on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast.
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Chinese firm wins Ceer automotive supplier park deal
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