Neom to start $2.7bn hydropower scheme qualification
12 March 2024
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Saudi Arabia’s Neom, through its subsidiary Enowa, is expected to issue the request for qualifications (RFQ) for a contract to develop and operate the first phase of the development’s planned pumped hydropower storage (PHS) network in the second quarter of 2024.
According to industry sources, the client received expressions of interest in bidding for the project from developers and contractors in January.
MEED previously reported that Neom had approached developers and investors to discuss the development of a pumped hydropower storage project, which will be developed using an independent power producer (IPP) model.
The planned first phase of Neom’s PHS project will have an installed capacity of 2,200MW and a storage capacity of 23.1 gigawatt-hours (GWh), or roughly 11 hours, according to industry sources.
It will be developed using a build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) model that is expected to cover 40 years, excluding the construction period.
The expected capital expenditure for the project is $2.7bn.
The overall infrastructure will entail the development of four pumped hydropower storage stations in Neom. The planned schemes will form the backbone of an energy storage infrastructure at the SR1.5tn ($500bn) development.
The UK-based HSBC and the US-based White & Case are advising the client on the scheme.
The pumped hydropower storage IPP project will complement Neom’s planned multi-gigawatt renewable energy infrastructure, in line with its vision of being 100% powered by renewable energy by 2030.
Pumped hydropower storage is a form of clean energy storage that is ideal for electricity grids that are reliant on solar and wind power, according to the International Hydropower Association, which says: “The technology absorbs surplus energy at times of low demand and releases it when demand is high.”
A pumped hydropower storage facility typically comprises two water reservoirs at different elevations that can generate power when water passes through a turbine and moves down or is discharged from the upper reservoir to the lower reservoir.
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Saudi Arabia and Turkiye sign railway agreements
10 June 2026
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Saudi Arabia and Turkiye have signed two memorandums of understanding (MoUs) to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the railway and logistics sectors, advancing Riyadh’s ambitions to become a global logistics hub.
Transport and Logistics Services Minister Saleh Al-Jasser and Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu signed the agreements at the ministry’s headquarters in Riyadh on 9 June, following ministerial talks held with a high-level Turkish delegation. Transport General Authority president Fawaz Al-Sahli and officials from the kingdom’s transport and logistics sector were also present.
Agreement scope
The first MoU covers logistics services and operations, including the exchange of expertise, policies and regulations. The second focuses on railway technologies, signalling and communication systems, railway digitalisation, human capacity development, the localisation of the railway industry and measures to reduce the sector’s environmental impact.
More broadly, the agreements cover cooperation on railway standards and related innovations, the exchange of expertise on the design, operation and maintenance of rail projects, and engineering, infrastructure and safety standards.
The two sides will also cooperate on research and development, with provision for joint workforce training through specialist railway academies.
Riyadh said the agreements will help support its National Strategy for Transport and Logistics Services and Saudi Vision 2030, which seeks to position the kingdom as a logistics bridge connecting three continents.
Turkish projects
Turkish contractors have already established themselves as key players in the region’s rail sector. In 2012, Yapi Merkezi secured a $2.1bn contract for work on the Haramain high-speed rail network in Saudi Arabia, while Turkish firms Mapa and Limak are leading the ongoing civil works on Dubai’s $5.5bn Metro Blue Line project as part of a China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC) consortium. Turkish consultancy Proyapi Muhendislik ve Musavirlik Anonim Sirketi has also won design contracts for the 111km Kuwait National Rail Road project.
The agreements signed by Saudi Arabia and Turkiye may also give momentum to longstanding discussions around a rail corridor linking the GCC with Turkiye. The route, which has been discussed for years, has gained renewed impetus in recent months as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has pushed regional governments to accelerate the development of overland trade alternatives.
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Joint venture tenders Algeria field development contract
10 June 2026
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Hassi Bir Rekaiz Group (GHBR), which operates Algeria’s Hassi Bir Rekaiz field, has issued a tender for phase 2A of the asset’s field development project.
GHBR is a joint venture of Algeria’s national oil and gas company Sonatrach and Thailand’s national exploration and production company PTTEP.
The scope of the contract focuses on the “provision of engineering and supervision services”, according to documents published by Sonatrach.
The tender has been issued with a bid deadline of 16 June 2026.
In May, GHBR signed a $1.1bn contract for phase two of the Hassi Bir Rekaiz development project.
The contract was won by a consortium of Egypt’s Petrojet and Italian engineering and contracting company Arkad.
Petrojet’s portion of the project was estimated to be worth around $600m, and Arkad’s portion was estimated to be worth $500m.
The contract used the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning model.
The scope of the project contract is focused on the construction of a central processing facility (CPF) capable of processing crude oil and associated gas.
It also includes developing off-plot pipelines, as well as related utilities and infrastructure.
The CPF will have the capacity to process 32,000 barrels a day (b/d) and will be designed to support future expansions.
The related infrastructure will include an extensive pipeline network spanning approximately 217 kilometres, as well as a road network.
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Algeria extends deadline for urea-formaldehyde project
10 June 2026
Algeria’s national oil and gas company Sonatrach has extended the bid deadline for a project to develop a new concentrated urea-formaldehyde unit in its Arzew industrial zone.
The latest bid deadline is 15 June.
The contract uses the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning model, and the bid deadline for technical tender submissions was originally set for early April.
The condensed urea-formaldehyde unit will be located at the CP1-Z facility.
The CP1-Z facility began operations in 1975 and has a capacity of 152,000 tonnes a year. It produces products including methanol, resin and formol.
It is a two-phase tender. The first phase is a technical bid submission, and the second phase is a commercial bid submission.
To be eligible to win this contract, companies must specialise in petrochemical industrial installation projects.
They also need to have a share capital of at least $7m and more than 15 years of relevant experience.
The new unit, UFC85, will have the capacity to produce 40,000 metric tonnes of concentrated and condensed urea-formaldehyde annually.
The project’s scope also includes the development of auxiliary equipment and installations.
Urea-formaldehyde has a wide range of uses, including the production of laminates, textiles and paper.
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Contractors submit prices for Abu Dhabi offshore gas project
10 June 2026
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Contractors have submitted commercial bids to Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) for a major project to develop the Waset offshore gas field, located in Abu Dhabi’s offshore Block 2.
The Waset gas development project involves engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of both offshore and onshore facilities.
The offshore EPC scope includes an offshore jacket, a nine-slot unmanned wellhead platform, over 80 kilometres of subsea pipelines, subsea cables and associated facilities.
Onshore works involve the EPC of new processing facilities on Arzanah Island. The project will leverage Adnoc’s existing infrastructure at Arzanah Island, which also serves as the operating base for its under-construction Dalma gas project.
Adnoc issued the main EPC tender for the Waset gas development project last year. Contractors submitted technical bids for the project by 15 January this year, while commercial bids were submitted on 5 June, sources told MEED.
Adnoc is targeting first gas production from the Waset field by 2027, with an expected output of approximately 180 million cubic feet a day.
Based on the production concession agreement awarded by Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs (SCFEA) in June 2025, Adnoc is the majority stakeholder in Block 2, with a 60% interest. Italian energy producer Eni and Thailand’s state-owned PTT Exploration & Production Public Company (PTTEP) hold 28% and 12% participating interests, respectively.
Block 2, located about 30km offshore Abu Dhabi city, covers approximately 4,033 sq km in water depths of around 30 metres.
Offshore Block 2 is located to the west of the Ghasha field in Gulf waters, “focusing primarily on conventional gas resources”. Adnoc awarded full exploration rights for Offshore Block 2, along with Offshore Block 1, to the consortium of Eni and PTTEP in January 2019, as part of Abu Dhabi’s first-ever upstream licensing round.
The Eni/PTTEP consortium announced two gas discoveries in Offshore Block 2 in 2022. The first discovery, announced in February of that year, was estimated to hold between 1.5 and 2 trillion cubic feet of gas resources. A second discovery of 1 to 1.5 trillion cubic feet of gas was announced in July, taking the total gas resources found in the asset to 2.5-3.5 trillion cubic feet.
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Contractor puts Tadawul IPO on hold
9 June 2026
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Saudi Arabia’s Mutlaq Al-Ghowairi Contracting Company (MGC) has postponed its planned initial public offering (IPO) on the main market of the Saudi Exchange (Tadawul).
The Riyadh-based contractor said it had decided to delay the offering after completing the institutional bookbuilding process and consulting with its financial advisers.
In a statement issued on 9 June, the company said the offering had attracted significant interest from international, regional and local investors.
However, it added: “Following the completion of the institutional book-building process and careful consideration of the objectives and strategic priorities of the company and its selling shareholders, the company has decided to postpone the offering and will continue to evaluate the most appropriate timing to proceed with the offering.”
MGC announced plans in May to float 240 million shares, representing 30% of its issued share capital, through the sale of existing shares by certain shareholders.
Following this, MGC set the price range for its IPO at between SR11 ($2.9) and SR12.5 ($3.3) a share, implying an offer size of SR2.64bn to SR3bn ($704m-$800m).
The transaction was structured as a secondary sale, with MGC not issuing any new shares or receiving proceeds from the offering. Net proceeds were due to be distributed to the selling shareholders.
The planned IPO followed approval from the Capital Market Authority (CMA), which was granted on 31 December last year.
Founded in 1977, MGC specialises in construction, operations and maintenance services. Its core activities include water infrastructure, transport and urban development projects.
The company said it had delivered more than 80 projects over the past five years and reported a backlog of SR10.57bn ($2.8bn) as of 31 March.
MGC said the postponement would not affect its operations or project delivery.
“MGC’s operational and financial fundamentals remain strong, and this decision does not impact the company’s day-to-day operations, client relationships, project delivery, or strategic priorities.”
The company added that it remains committed to its growth strategy and supporting infrastructure projects across Saudi Arabia in line with Vision 2030.
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