Related Articles

• 
  Firms submit Dubai multibillion-dollar road scheme interest

  19 October 2026

  

   

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  Contractors submitted expressions of interest on 10 October for a design-and-build contract for a multibillion-dollar new road that will run parallel to Sheikh Zayed Road.

  Dubai’s Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) held an online meeting after the submissions to prepare for the prequalification phase of tendering, expected to start in a few weeks.

  The scope covers about 30 kilometres (km) of works.

  These include about 15km of viaduct along First Al-Khail Street and more than 14.5km of bridge ramps, along with other associated infrastructure works.

  The RTA floated the expression of interest notice to contractors in early September.

  The project is another significant initiative aimed at alleviating pressure on the existing Sheikh Zayed Road section from Hadiqa Street to Hessa Street.

  Dubai has previously explored bold concepts to expand capacity on Sheikh Zayed Road, including proposals to introduce double-decker sections to add extra lanes without widening the existing corridor.

  The idea was discussed in the context of rising congestion and limited right-of-way along one of the city’s busiest arterial roads, with elevated decks potentially carrying through traffic while existing at-grade lanes served local access.

  The plans ultimately became standalone schemes, with subsequent efforts focusing instead on corridor-wide upgrades, interchange improvements and complementary public transport expansions to manage demand more sustainably.

  The latest project aligns with Dubai’s continued investment in upgrading and expanding its road network to keep pace with rapid population growth and rising commuting demand.

  Planning for growth

  Dubai launched the 2040 Urban Master Plan in March 2021, referencing studies indicating that the emirate’s population will reach 5.8 million by 2040, up from 3.3 million in 2020. The daytime population is set to increase from 4.5 million in 2020 to 7.8 million in 2040.

  In December 2022, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, approved the 20-Minute City Policy as part of the second phase of the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan. 

  In addition to the road projects, the RTA’s Dubai Metro Blue Line extension and Dubai Metro Gold Line form part of Dubai’s plans to improve residents’ quality of life by cutting journey times, as outlined in the policy.

  The policy aims for residents to have 80% of their daily requirements within a 20-minute journey, on foot or by bicycle. This goal will be achieved by developing integrated service centres with all necessary facilities and increasing population density around mass transit stations.

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  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:

  > AGENDA: Oxagon takes centre stage at Neom > MARKET FOCUS: Saudi projects hold steady > INDUSTRY REPORT: MEED’s 2026 GCC power developer ranking > POWER: AI is creating a grid capacity problem > LEGAL: What IFAD’s wind-down means for Gulf commodity markets > OIL: Oil companies focus on North Africa amid Hormuz crisis  > LEADERSHIP: The future city does not need to hang above the ground

  To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here

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  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Bahrain awards Sitra 400kV grid contracts

  19 October 2026

  Bahrain’s Electricity & Water Authority (EWA) has awarded two contracts related to the establishment of new Sitra 400kV grid substations, according to sources.

  The first contract covers transformer and reactor works including the supply and installation of three 400 kV, 500 MVA power transformers along with associated reactors. The package covers design, manufacturing, supply, transportation, erection, testing, and commissioning.

  Switzerland-headquartered Hitachi Energy has been appointed as the main contractor for these works after submitting a bid of BD17.8m ($47.1m) in April, as reported by MEED.

  Germany’s Siemens Energy previously submitted the only other offer of BD23.9m ($63.2m).

  The second contract involves 400kV and 220kV feeder cable works for the same Sitra 400kV grid substations. The package covers the design, manufacture, supply, transportation, installation, testing and commissioning of 400kV and 220kV feeder cables.

  Earlier this year, MEED reported that three South Korean companies had made offers for the feeder cable packages, with Iljin Electric submitting the lowest bid of BD35m ($92.7m).

  It is understood that the contractor has now been appointed to carry out the main works for the project.

  The works are part of the broader “Establishment of New 400 kV Grid Substations & Subsystem” initiative, aiming to bolster the power grid’s capacity and support integration with new power and water infrastructure at Sitra.

  In September 2025, Siemens Energy won a contract worth BD48.1m ($127m) to build a 400kV transmission substation in Sitra to provide the transmission link for the planned Sitra independent water and power plant (IWPP), which is expected to generate at least 1,200MW of electricity.

  Bahrain’s fourth IWPP is being procured by EWA under a public-private partnership framework for 20-25 years.

  The combined-cycle gas turbine plant includes a seawater reverse osmosis desalination facility, which will have a production capacity of 30 million imperial gallons a day of potable water.

  Last month, MEED exclusively reported on proposed first-year tariffs for the project following the opening of financial bids. Saudi Arabia’s Acwa submitted the lowest offer for both the power and water components.

  This includes a first-year power tariff of BD17.1652 ($45.65) a megawatt-hour and a water tariff of BD0.4915 ($1.307) a cubic metre.

  Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) submitted a first-year power tariff of BD17.48190 ($46.49) a megawatt-hour and a water tariff of BD0.54285 ($1.444 ) a cubic metre.

  The main contract for the build-own-operate project is expected to be awarded by the end of the year.

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  Mark Dowdall
• 
  Algeria tenders 310km Tamanrasset railway

  16 October 2026

  

   

  Algeria’s state railway project developer, Agence Nationale d’Etudes et de Suivi de la Realisation des Investissements Ferroviaires (Anesrif), has invited national and international contractors to bid for the construction of a 310-kilometre (km) railway line between Hotel Station and Moulay Lahcen Station. 

  The planned line is a key segment of the proposed railway corridor connecting El-Menea, In-Salah and Tamanrasset across the southern wilayas of In-Salah and Tamanrasset.

  The tender notice was issued on 12 October, with bids due by 10 November.

  The tender is open to single contractors and consortiums. To qualify, single firms must have executed at least 200km of new railway lines or track-doubling works since 2010, with accepted project certificates covering sections of at least 100km, along with a cumulative 800 metres of railway bridges with individual spans exceeding 30 metres.

  Bidders must also provide at least two rail-tamping machines, two ballast regulators, and a project director with an engineering degree and at least five years of railway construction management experience.

  From a commercial and classification perspective, single bidders and consortium leaders must hold a category-nine (IX) professional qualification in public works.

  Bidders must also demonstrate an average annual turnover in construction of at least DZ260bn ($1.96bn) across the 2023-2025 financial period.

  For joint ventures, the cumulative turnover of all members must meet the $1.96bn threshold, with the consortium leader accounting for at least $1.3bn.

  Offers must be accompanied by a bid bond exceeding 1% of the total bid value for submissions exceeding $7.4m, with proposals remaining valid for 90 days beyond the submission date.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20665591/main.jpg

  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Joint venture wins $246m RCRC bridges contract

  16 October 2026

  

   

  A joint venture of local contractor Mofarreh Group and Turkey-based Gulsan Holding has won an estimated SR923m ($246m) contract from the Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC) to construct a series of grade-separated steel flyovers across the capital.

  The contract, known as Package 2 (Groups 2 and 3), is part of RCRC’s urgent bridges programme under the wider project to build steel bridges at 10 junctions across Riyadh.

  The works have a 12-month execution timeline to fast-track traffic decongestion across major arterial corridors.

  The joint venture’s scope covers the engineering and construction of grade-separated steel bridge interchanges across seven key intersections:

  • IC04: Al-Khair Road and King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Road
  • IC05: Prince Turki Road and Imam Saud Road
  • IC06: Al-Takhassosi Road and Saeed Al-Sulami Road
  • IC07: Khurais Road and Al-Hareth Bin Abdullah Road
  • IC08: Khurais Road and Ash-Sharq Road
  • IC09: Khurais Road and Marmar Road
  • IC10: Al-Kharj Road and Al-Hilla Road

  The total length of the flyovers is 8.86 kilometres, excluding Junction IC10.

  In addition to the structural steel superstructures, concrete bridge foundations, decks and approach ramps, the contract includes retaining walls, utility diversions, temporary phased traffic arrangements, associated roadworks, drainage networks, roadway lighting, intelligent transportation systems and landscaping.

  The client received commercial proposals from several local and international contractors. Other bidders included:

  • Masco
  • Nesma & Partners
  • Al-Omaier Trading & Contracting Company 
  • Yuksel Saudia 
  • Batco 
  • Modern Building Leaders
  • Sapac

  The urgent bridges initiative is part of Riyadh’s rapid transport infrastructure programme to improve traffic throughput, enhance safety and ease vehicular congestion across central and ring-road corridors ahead of major events, including Expo 2030 and the 2034 Fifa World Cup.

  In July, Mofarreh Group and Turkiye’s Gulsan Holding formed a joint venture to bid for and deliver transport infrastructure projects in Riyadh for RCRC.

  The joint venture said it will target road, bridge, viaduct and interchange projects.

  Mofarreh will provide local market access and operational capacity, while Gulsan will contribute international experience in large-scale transport projects.

  The companies said the new venture will support knowledge transfer and localisation, and promote the use of international engineering and construction standards aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 infrastructure and sustainability goals.

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  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Humain tenders 100MW Riyadh AI data centre

  16 October 2026

  

   

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  Saudi artificial intelligence infrastructure developer Humain has issued a request for proposals for an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to deliver a 100MW artificial intelligence (AI) data centre facility in Riyadh’s Al-Saad area.

  The tender was issued on 17 September, with bids due by 8 November.

  The contract includes core-and-shell works; civil works; mechanical, electrical and plumbing installation; testing and commissioning; and site infrastructure across a 350,200-square-metre plot.

  The project also includes an optional expansion phase that could raise total site capacity to 200MW.

  The initial 100MW development is split into two equal 50MW phases, structured across two single-storey IT buildings housing four 25MW data halls.

  Phase one targets a ready-for-service date by October 2028, followed by phase two in January 2029.

  Under the optional phase three, an additional 100MW facility would be brought online by July 2029.

  The data centre will be designed to support high-density graphics processing unit clusters and AI-compute workloads, with rack densities of 240kW to 250kW.

  The facility will be built to Uptime Institute Tier III topology and LEED Silver standards as a baseline, targeting LEED Gold.

  The operational design targets an annualised power usage effectiveness below 1.35.

  Power will be delivered through four 33kV connections supplied by Saudi Electricity Company from two separate high-voltage/medium-voltage primary substations. The scope requires 15 transformers, 15 static 2,250kW IT uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units, and 450kW mechanical UPS systems with lithium-ion battery storage for each 25MW block. 

  Backup emergency diesel generators will be provided on an owner-furnished, contractor-installed basis, with the EPC contractor handling their installation, connection and testing. Fuel storage will provide 24 hours of autonomous run-time, split between on-site underground bulk tanks and generator belly tanks.

  Thermal management combines air and liquid cooling. High-density server racks will be equipped with direct-to-chip liquid cooling loops using coolant distribution units and technical water distribution, paired with air-cooled chillers operating in dual high- and low-temperature loops, alongside fan-wall units.

  The total construction timeline is capped at 25 months from site handover or contract signing, with pre-execution early mobilisation scheduled to start in January 2027.

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  Yasir Iqbal