meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Work advances on Saudi Maaden mine renewables project

21 April 2026

 

Local contractor Arabian Qudra Company is advancing construction works on an integrated solar photovoltaic (PV) and battery energy storage system (bess) project at the Al-Baitha bauxite mine in Saudi Arabia.

The off-grid facility will integrate an 8MWp solar PV array with a 30MWh bess, allowing the mine to operate almost entirely on renewable energy.

Emerge, a joint venture of Masdar and EDF Power Solutions, is developing the project, including managing financing, design, procurement, construction, operation and maintenance.

Last August, MEED reported that Maaden Bauxite & Alumina Company (MBAC), a subsidiary of Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden), had signed a 30-year power purchase agreement with Emerge to supply its Al-Baitha bauxite mine with renewable energy.

Arabian Qudra Company was subsequently appointed as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor, with works beginning at the start of 2026.

The firm is a subsidiary of Abunayyan Holding Company, a privately owned Saudi industrial group.

The project is expected to generate around 17,300MWh of electricity annually and provide a continuous 24/7 power supply. It will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 13,800 tonnes a year.

According to projects tracker MEED Projects, construction is expected to be completed in early 2028.

Maaden Solar 1

Maaden is also in the early stages of developing Maaden Solar 1, potentially the world’s largest solar process heat plant. 

MEED previously reported that US-based GlassPoint had partnered with Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment as a first step towards construction of the planned $1.5bn project.

In 2025, Spain-headquartered Cox Energy signed a collaboration agreement with the client to participate in the project. The client had been expected to invest approximately $31.1m in the first phase of the project.

Once complete, Maaden Solar 1 will be a 1,500 megawatt-thermal (MWth) facility. A timeline for the project remains unclear, with construction not expected to begin until at least 2027.

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

Economic shock threatens long-term outlook; Riyadh adjusts to fiscal and geopolitical risk; GCC contractor ranking reflects gigaprojects slowdown.

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

> GCC CONTRACTOR RANKING: Construction guard undergoes a shift
To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16487404/main.jpg
Mark Dowdall

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Abu Dhabi announces $15bn infrastructure PPP projects

    12 May 2026

    The Abu Dhabi Investment Office and the Abu Dhabi Projects and Infrastructure Centre have launched a AED55bn ($15bn) public-private partnership (PPP) pipeline of 24 projects to be tendered in 2026 and 2027.

    The projects will be tendered across the transport, infrastructure and social sectors.

    According to a statement published by the Abu Dhabi Media Office, the transport sector accounts for 11 road projects, with AED35bn ($9.5bn) of construction capex, covering more than 300 kilometres of new and upgraded roads, tunnels, intersections and related network works.

    The infrastructure pipeline includes five projects budgeted at AED11bn ($3bn), covering dams, water storage, flood control, stormwater upgrades and urban landscaping.

    Social infrastructure includes eight projects budgeted at AED9bn ($2.5bn), covering sports facilities, specialist healthcare assets, schools and university campuses.

    The statement added that the pipeline forms part of Abu Dhabi’s infrastructure delivery plan and will be executed through PPP structures.

    It is also intended to support company establishment in the emirate, local content objectives, and supply-chain and industrial capacity.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16793904/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Saudi Arabia tenders GCC rail link from Kuwait to UAE border

    12 May 2026

     

    Saudi Arabia has begun the procurement process to deliver its portion of the GCC railway, which will connect all six member states.

    Saudi Arabia Railways (SAR) issued a tender for design consultancy services for the project on 7 May.

    The kingdom’s section of the railway will start at Al-Khafji in the Eastern Province, near the border with Kuwait, and end at Al-Batha, at Saudi Arabia’s border with the UAE. The route length in Saudi Arabia will be about 672 kilometres (km).

    The railway will interface with the Kuwait National Rail Road (KNRR) project on the Kuwaiti side. Last year, MEED exclusively reported that the KNRR design contract was awarded to Türkiye’s Proyapi Muhendislik ve Musavirlik Anonim Sirketi.

    The KNRR forms part of the wider GCC rail network. GCC railway projects have been progressing with renewed impetus since the six member states signed the Al-Ula Declaration in January 2021.

    In October last year, the Qatari cabinet approved a draft agreement paving the way for a railway link between Qatar and Saudi Arabia as part of the GCC railway network.

    GCC railway line

    Under the overall plan, the railway will span 2,186 kilometres, beginning in Kuwait, passing through Dammam in Saudi Arabia, reaching Bahrain via a planned causeway, and continuing from Dammam to Qatar, the UAE and, ultimately, Muscat via Sohar in Oman.

    The network’s route length within each member state is as follows: 684km in the UAE, 672km in Saudi Arabia, 306km in Oman, 283km in Qatar, 145km in Kuwait and 36km in Bahrain.

    The railway is designed for passenger trains travelling at 220 kilometres an hour (km/h) and freight trains operating at 80-120km/h.

    With high levels of project activity, governments in spending mode and renewed cooperation under the Al-Ula Declaration, the latest efforts to restart the GCC railway project may make more progress than previous attempts. If completed, the railway could prove transformational for a region that is globally connected but divided between its constituent parts.

    > Be recognised among the best in the industry at the MEED Projects Awards 2026 …

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16793841/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Kuwait tenders upstream oil project

    12 May 2026

    State-owned upstream operator Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has tendered a contract to develop power infrastructure to provide electricity to the country’s Bahra oil field.

    The project focuses on constructing an 11kV, 72MW main intake in the Bahra-A area.

    It also includes the development of 11kV, 20MW substations in the Bahra-A2 area, and the conversion of a substation in the Bahra-A1 area in northern Kuwait.

    An initial meeting for the project is scheduled for 7 June, and bids are due by 9 August.

    Kuwait’s oil and gas sector has been severely impacted by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which all of its crude exports are normally shipped.

    The country recorded zero crude oil exports in April for the first time since the end of the Gulf War in 1991, according to shipping monitor TankerTrackers.com.

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

    Global energy sector forced to recalibrate; Conflict hits debt issuance and listings activity; UAE’s non-oil sector faces unclear recovery period amid disruption.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the May 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16792080/main.png
    Wil Crisp
  • Chinese company signs deal to develop Syria cement plant

    12 May 2026

    China’s Jiangsu Pengfei Group has signed a deal with Damascus-based Al-Hasan Holding Group (HHG) to develop a cement plant in Syria’s Raqa governorate.

    The “strategic agreement” was signed on 29 April, according to a statement from HHG.

    The clinker production line will have a capacity of 5,000 tonnes a day (t/d).

    Syria is seeking to expand cement production capacity to meet demand from the domestic construction sector.

    HHG is an integrated investment conglomerate headquartered in Damascus with a portfolio of companies across sectors including industry, trade, energy, construction, tourism and services.

    It was founded by the Syrian businessman Hassan Kamel Al-Hasan.

    Jiangsu Pengfei Group is a manufacturer of rotary kiln and grinding equipment.

    The company is involved in the design, manufacture and service of equipment in the fields of building materials, metallurgy and the chemical industry.

    It is also an engineering, procurement and construction service provider that has completed more than 100 cement production line projects.

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

    Global energy sector forced to recalibrate; Conflict hits debt issuance and listings activity; UAE’s non-oil sector faces unclear recovery period amid disruption.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the May 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16792079/main.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Libya’s national oil company takes control of key refinery

    12 May 2026

    Libya’s state-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC) has signed an agreement to take full control of the country’s Ras Lanuf refinery.

    The agreement marks the end of a decade-long dispute with UAE-based Trasta Energy.

    NOC has signed a final agreement with Trasta to end their partnership in the Libyan Emirates Oil Refining Company (Lerco), giving the NOC full ownership of the Ras Lanuf refinery and petrochemical complex, according to a statement.

    In its statement, NOC said the deal was one of the most important developments in Libya’s oil sector since the 2011 uprising and closed one of the industry’s most complex disputes.

    NOC also said that the deal has paved the way for a new phase of rehabilitation, operation and development.

    Some analysts have linked tensions in the partnership to political divisions in Libya and the UAE’s support for eastern military commander Khalifa Haftar.

    Lerco was established as a joint venture to operate and develop the Ras Lanuf complex, but operations were disrupted after Libya’s civil war, which started in 2011 and overthrew Muammar Gaddafi.

    The Ras Lanuf complex is located about 600 kilometres east of Tripoli on Libya’s northeastern coast and has the capacity to refine about 220,000 barrels of oil a day (b/d), which would make it the country’s largest if it comes online.

    It includes a refinery, storage facilities, export terminals and petrochemical units.

    Under the agreement, all of Trasta’s shares will be transferred to the NOC, allowing the complex to operate under full Libyan management.

    Political instability and security problems have led to repeated problems in Libya’s downstream sector over the past decade.

    On 10 May, it was announced that the Zawiya refinery, which is the country’s largest functioning oil refinery, and the nearby oil port were resuming operations after military clashes forced the refinery to shut down for two days.

    Azzawiya Oil Refining Company, which operates the facility, said it had decided to lift the state of emergency, allowing work to resume at the site.

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

    Global energy sector forced to recalibrate; Conflict hits debt issuance and listings activity; UAE’s non-oil sector faces unclear recovery period amid disruption.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the May 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16792076/main.jpg
    Wil Crisp