Meed | Big construction plans offer hope to Maghreb market

Big construction plans offer hope to Maghreb market

10 July 2023

This package on the Maghreb also includes:

> Morocco plans six stadium projects for 2030 World Cup
> Libya has potential for energy project surge
> Security company licensing system overhauled in Libya
> US firm plans 2MW Morocco hydrogen project
> Italy and Tunisia start $1bn Elmed prequalifications

Based on the total value of work under execution, the Maghreb region remains an active market for construction companies.

According to regional projects tracker MEED Projects, there are $33bn of construction and transport projects at the execution stage in the Maghreb.

Algeria and Morocco are the two most active markets with $19.6bn and $10bn of projects under execution, respectively.

Libya and Tunisia have about $1.4bn of projects under execution each.

The challenge is that many of these projects are long-standing ones, with the average duration of ongoing projects exceeding four-and-a-half years.

At the same time, the value of new project awards remains subdued. Over the past year, there have been $1.2bn of construction and transport awards across the four countries.

During that period, there have only been two contract awards with a value exceeding $100m in the Maghreb region.

The largest is a $403m contract to build a 36.5-kilometre-long stretch of highway in Morocco; the other is a $330m deal to expand a port in Algeria.

A joint venture of Mojazine Groupe and NGE Contracting, Entreprise Houar, secured the Moroccan road scheme. The Ministry of Equipment, Transport, Logistics & Water project involves constructing a highway connecting Guercif to Saka as part of Morocco’s Guercif-Nador motorway project.

China Harbour Engineering Company secured the $330m Algerian contract to expand Arzew port.

Morocco opportunities

With few significant projects awarded over the past year, construction companies are looking to the future for new opportunities.

Morocco’s prospects for major construction projects appear the most promising, driven by two significant developments: the Spain-Morocco tunnel project and the potential hosting of the 2030 World Cup.

In June, Spain approved funding for the Spanish Society for Fixed Communication across the Strait of Gibraltar (Secegsa) to conduct a design study for a tunnel link under the Mediterranean. Planned since 1980, the proposed railway tunnel is 38.7km long and will undoubtedly require the involvement of major international construction companies.

For the World Cup, King Mohammed VI announced Morocco’s plans to join Spain and Portugal’s bid to host the 2030 tournament in March. To facilitate hosting the event, Morocco plans to build a 93,000-seat stadium in Casablanca and upgrade at least five existing stadiums.

The estimated MD2bn ($200m) stadium planned for Casablanca will be built on the outskirts of the city. It will be developed with the involvement of the Ministry of National Education, Preschool & Sports, the Royal Moroccan Football Federation and the local municipalities.

The five stadiums to be upgraded are the Prince Moulay Abdallah stadium in Rabat, the Ibn Battuta stadium in Tangier, and stadiums in Fez, Agadir and Marrakesh. A stadium in Tetouan may also be upgraded.

Algeria rail

In Algeria, the future pipeline of projects is dominated by railway schemes. At the end of 2022, Algeria’s National Agency for the Engineering & Monitoring of the Achievement of Railway Investments (Anesrif) invited national and international companies to express interest in working on its multibillion-dollar rail-building programme. It involves the development of lines that, when complete, will total more than 12,000km in length.

Tunisia viaduct

In Tunisia, the opportunities are more limited. One project that has attracted interest from international construction companies is the design and build of a 2.1km viaduct linking Tunis and Bizerte.

At the end of last year, the Equipment, Housing & Infrastructure Ministry prequalified firms including players from China, France, Turkey, Egypt, Italy and Japan for the estimated $250m scheme. The project is expected to be tendered this year.

The scheme, which is cofinanced by the European Investment Bank and African Development Bank, is split into three sections. The south liaison road, which comprises lot one, includes three interchanges. The main viaduct forms lot two, and the north liaison road, lot three, will feature one interchange.

Longer term, foreign investors may play a leading role in the market. One such investor is the UAE’s Bukhatir Group, which plans to revive a $5bn sports-focused development in northern Tunis. In its first phase, it will include the construction of luxury villas and a golf course.

Libya highway

For Libya, there are high hopes that the market will soon put a decade-long conflict behind it. Over the past year, various moves have indicated that new projects may now be starting to progress.

The most significant of these came at the end of 2022 when it was reported that the Italian government had begun the tendering process for the coastal highway linking the east and west of Libya from Misrata to Ras Jedir, on the border with Tunisia.

For the Maghreb to become a dynamic construction market, the plans for projects in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya will need to start moving ahead in 2023 and 2024. If not, the market will remain subdued.

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Colin Foreman

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22 September 2026
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22 September 2026
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Jedco maps next phase of Jeddah airport expansion
22 September 2026

Jeddah Airports Company (Jedco) has outlined plans for the next phase of expansion at King Abdulaziz International airport (KAIA) in Jeddah.

The programme comprises six upcoming contractor packages spanning airside works, terminal upgrades and utilities as Jedco advances its long-term expansion plans.

The opportunities include airfield rehabilitation; a five-year construction framework covering multiple workstreams and facility types; a Terminal 3A (T3A) package; Terminal 1 (T1) optimisation; a fuel farm; and Concourse C works.

The packages cover terminal buildings and ancillary facilities, runways, taxiways and aprons, hangars, fuel systems, airside facilities, supporting infrastructure and utility networks.

Tendering and award activity will be staggered over the next two years. Airfield rehabilitation is targeted for Q3 2026. The construction framework is scheduled for Q4 2026 and will run for five years.

The T3A package is planned for Q1 2027 and will be delivered under an early contractor involvement contract. Local contractors are encouraged to bid as part of a joint venture with an experienced international partner.

T1 optimisation is planned for Q4 2027, the fuel farm for Q2 2027, and Concourse C – currently the latest of the six milestones – for Q2 2028.

The new packages add detail to Jedco’s wider expansion plans disclosed in 2023, when it was reported that the company would invest SR115bn ($31bn) to increase KAIA’s capacity to 114 million passengers a year, with an overall completion target of 2031.

Jedco has recently awarded several significant contracts linked to the airport’s upgrade programme.

In November 2024, a joint venture of local Algihaz Contracting and Turkey’s TAV was awarded a contract to rehabilitate the South Terminal to serve Umrah and Hajj pilgrims, with Singapore’s Surbana Jurong acting as consultant.

Earlier that year, Jedco also awarded France’s Alstom a contract to increase the capacity of the Innovia automated people mover at Terminal 1, including new cars and upgrades to signalling, communications and controls.

Surbana Jurong is expected to play a leading role in future KAIA expansion plans and is currently providing technical advisory and project management consultancy for more than 100 capital projects for Jedco, valued at over SR6bn ($1.6bn).

These upgrades are expected to boost KAIA’s annual capacity in line with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and National Aviation Strategy, enhancing the experience for domestic travellers and millions of Hajj and Umrah pilgrims.

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Yasir Iqbal

Contractor wins $105m Medina university hospital deal

22 September 2026

Riyadh-based construction firm Al-Mansouria General Contracting Company has been awarded a SR396m ($105.6m) contract to complete the remaining construction works on the Taiba University Hospital project in Medina.

The contract scope includes structural completion, remaining civil works, mechanical, electrical and plumbing installations, specialised clinical fit-outs and medical gas infrastructure to bring the long-stalled facility into operation.

Located on King Khalid Road along Medina’s Third Ring Road, the teaching hospital will have a capacity of 563 beds.

The contract duration is three years, with delivery targeted for late 2029.

The latest award follows a prolonged procurement cycle that began more than a decade ago as part of a public budget drive to expand Saudi Arabia’s higher education infrastructure.

The project’s first phase was initially signed in December 2011 with local firm Al-Muhaidib Contracting under a SR500m ($133.3m) contract.

Groundbreaking for the eight-storey complex took place in July 2013. The project covers a gross floor area of more than 200,000 square metres.

Progress stalled shortly thereafter due to reported structural delays and the reallocation of public capital budgets across the kingdom’s social infrastructure pipeline.

READ THE SEPTEMBER 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

Nuclear power ambitions gather pace; Kuwait keeps dealmaking alive despite war; Region invests in raising gas processing capacity.

Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the September 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

> AGENDA: Gulf nuclear revival takes shape

> MARKET FOCUS: Kuwait keeps dealmaking alive under fire

> INDUSTRY REPORT: Gas processing takes centre stage in Mena region

> INTERVIEW: Emsteel persists with business productivity and efficiency

> TUNNELS: The Gulf’s next construction boom is happening underground

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

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Yasir Iqbal

Oman tenders Thumrait Industrial City infrastructure
22 September 2026

Oman’s Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (Madayn) has tendered an estimated RO15m ($39m) contract to develop infrastructure for Thumrait Industrial City.

The tender was issued on 14 September, with bids due by 12 November.

The scope covers site-wide utilities and services, including an internal road network, stormwater channels and culverts. It also includes installing sewerage and water networks, along with landscaping works.

In addition, Madayn intends to build plug-and-play industrial units and a facilities building.

The first phase of the development will cover about 120,000 square metres (sq m).

Thumrait Industrial City is located in Oman’s Dhofar Governorate and spans an area of more than four million sq m.

The project location is close to concession blocks, quarry sites and the Najd agricultural areas. It is positioned to attract industrial investments in sectors such as mining and minerals processing (including gypsum and cement), food production, and a range of light and general manufacturing activities.

In March, Madayn said it is preparing to invest more than RO245m ($637m) to upgrade and expand infrastructure across its industrial cities between 2026 and 2030, as part of efforts to attract new investment and advance economic diversification.

According to media reports, Madayn chief executive Dawood Bin Salim Al-Hadabi said the programme is part of an expanded, phased plan aligned with Oman Vision 2040 and the authority’s long-term Madayn 2040 strategy.

The objective is to deepen Oman’s industrial base and spread growth across the sultanate’s governorates.

Madayn said the pipeline comprises about 90 strategic projects to improve industrial-city infrastructure, extend serviced land and increase the overall ease of doing business for investors.

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Yasir Iqbal
Kuwait halves drilling contractor pool
22 September 2026
State-owned upstream operator Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has reduced the number of approved contractors for onshore drilling and shallow-well maintenance from 51 to 24.

Firms that are no longer qualified include major contractors such as Italy’s Saipem, Oklahoma-based Helmerich & Payne and Houston-based Patterson-UTI Energy.

The latest list still includes a wide range of Kuwaiti, regional and international companies, according to the latest update on its electronic system, published on 21 September 2026.

The full list of contractors that are now qualified to participate in tenders is:
- Burgan Company for Well Drilling, Trading & Maintenance (Kuwait)
- Kuwait Drilling Company (Kuwait)
- Sun Drilling Kuwait (Kuwait)
- TDL Kuwait for Oil Rigs & Natural Gas Extraction Activities, Services and Facilities (Kuwait)
- United Precision Drilling (Kuwait)
- Abraj Energy Services (Oman)
- Adnoc Drilling Company (UAE)
- Arabian Drilling Company (Saudi Arabia)
- Anton Oilfield Services (China)
- China Oilfield Services (China)
- Egyptian Drilling Company (Egypt)
- CNPC Bohai Drilling Engineering Company (China)
- Great Wall Drilling Company (China)
- John Energy (India)
- Kerui Oilfield Service (China)
- KCA Deutag Drilling (Germany)
- Mohammed Al-Barwani Petroleum Services (Oman)
- Nabors Drilling International (US)
- National Drilling & Services Company (Oman)
- Sea & Land Drilling Contractors (Oman)
- Sinopec International Petroleum Service Corporation (China)
- Karamay Jianye Energy (China)
- Modern Drilling Company (Egypt)
- Grey Wolf Drilling International (US)
An earlier list, which was published on 11 February, included 51 qualified companies.

The reduction in qualified drilling contractors follows KOC’s notice on 27 April this year, informing existing qualified contractors that they would need to reapply.
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Wil Crisp

Abu Dhabi expects 45% emissions cut as electricity demand rises

21 September 2026

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Abu Dhabi-based Emirates Water & Electricity Company (Ewec) expects carbon emissions from power and water production to fall by more than 45% by 2035 as the UAE expands renewable energy and reverse osmosis (RO) desalination.

The state offtaker's latest long-term system planning forecasts emissions will decline from about 42 million tonnes in 2019 to approximately 23 million tonnes in 2035.

The reduction is expected despite annual electricity demand that is forecast to rise by about 70% in 2026-33.

Ewec said the expansion of renewable energy and the shift towards RO desalination will be the principal drivers of the reduction.

The company plans to increase Abu Dhabi's solar capacity to 14GW by 2030 and more than 35GW by 2035. This will be supported by up to 15GW of battery storage capacity.

According to regional project tracker MEED Projects, Ewec has over $16bn-worth of power and water projects in the execution stage as part of its long-term procurement programme to increase renewable energy and low-carbon water production capacity.

This includes a 5.2GW Abu Dhabi solar and battery energy storage system (bess) round-the-clock renewable energy project, as well as three 1.5GW solar photovoltaic independent power projects (IPP): Al-Ajban, Al-Khazna and Al-Zarraf.

It also comprises the 1GW Al-Dhafra open-cycle gas turbine power plant, the 2.5GW Taweelah C combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plant and a separate 400MW bess IPP.

As previously reported, it is expected that the developer's agreement for the 3.3GW Al-Nouf 1 CCGT IPP will be signed by the end of the year, while contractors are preparing to submit bids for a separate 2.6GW power plant project in Ajman.

The expansion of solar and battery storage is expected to reduce the system's reliance on gas-fired generation. However, gas-fired generation will continue to provide flexibility to support the system and balance intermittent renewable power output, according to Ewec.

The offtaker also expects RO desalination to account for more than 95% of total water production by 2035, with the procurement programme supporting the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy's Clean Energy Strategic Target 2035 for electricity production and the UAE Net Zero by 2050 Strategy.