meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Contractors take on more work in 2025

30 April 2025

 

Contractors in the region have increased their orderbooks in the past year as the GCC’s key construction markets – Saudi Arabia and the UAE – have continued to award major contracts. 

In Saudi Arabia, the rate of growth has not matched that experienced in 2023-24, which suggests that the market is reaching saturation at time when client bodies are assessing their future spending plans.

In the UAE, the value of projects that contractors are working on has increased significantly, which reflects the start of public works schemes such as the Dubai Metro, as well as the ongoing boom in real estate, which has allowed developers to start work on an array of new building projects.

Top performers

Based on data from regional projects tracker MEED Projects, the GCC’s most active contractor is Saudi Arabia’s Nesma & Partners, with $13.9bn of work at the execution stage. While it remains the top-ranked contractor, the total value of projects it has at the execution stage has dropped from the $15bn total it had in 2024.

While Nesma & Partners remains the top-ranked contractor in 2025, the total value of projects it has at the execution stage has dropped

In 2024, Nesma was ahead of the second-ranked contractor by $5bn – Italy’s Webuild had $10bn of projects under execution last year. This year, the contractor in second place, Beijing-based China State Construction Engineering Corporation, is just $300m behind Nesma with $13.5bn. China State has grown strongly over the past five years, as it has expanded its presence in Saudi Arabia significantly and is now the second-ranked contractor in the kingdom. 

Turkiye’s Limak, which is in third position, is also close behind with $12.9bn of projects under execution. Limak has added the Dubai Metro Blue Line project to its existing work on Kuwait International airport.

There are five other Saudi firms in the top 10, which reflects the kingdom’s status as the region’s largest construction market, and the ambition and scale of its infrastructure spending and gigaprojects programme. 

The other Saudi contractors in the top 10 are Almabani in fourth place with $8.5bn of projects; Shibh Al-Jazira, which also has $8.5bn of projects, in fifth; and El-Seif Engineering Contracting in sixth with $8.3bn of projects under execution. 

Al-Bawani then follows in eighth position with $7.3bn of projects, and Saudi Binladin Group rounds out the top 10 with $6.5bn of projects in 10th place.

The other contractors in the top 10 are Abu Dhabi-headquartered Trojan General Contracting, which is in seventh place with $8bn of projects, and Dubai-based Alec, which has secured ninth place in the ranking with $6.8bn of work at the execution stage, spilt between its home market in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Alec is reportedly considering an initial public offering, which is another sign of how well the construction sector is performing in 2025.

Bahrain

The top two contractors in Bahrain’s ranking in 2025 remain the same. China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) retains the top spot with $700m of work at the execution phase. The Chinese contractor’s work centres on building residential units at East Sitra for the Housing & Urban Planning Ministry. In July 2024, it signed a deal to build 1,269 houses for the third phase of the scheme.

The third phase adds to the project’s second phase, which has 531 units and was handed over in early 2024. The first phase, which has 1,077 units, has also been handed over. The housing ministry signed a BD260m ($689.9m) deal with CMEC for the construction of more than 3,000 housing units at East Sitra in December 2019.

Al-Hamad Building Contracting remains the second-ranked contractor. Its largest project is the longstanding Villamar residential complex at Bahrain Financial Harbour in Manama for Gulf Holding Company.

Grnata joins the top 10 in third position. Its largest ongoing project is the Golden Gate Towers scheme in Manama for the Grnata Group, which involves the construction of two towers, one with 45 and the other with 53 storeys, that together will have a total of 746 apartments.

Grnata edges out Nass Contracting, which was in third place in 2024. Nass drops down the ranking despite two high-profile contract awards. In May 2024, its joint venture with Nassir Hazza & Bros won a BD37.2m contract for the construction works on package three of the Busaiteen Link scheme for the Works Ministry.

Nass also won a $45m contract in June 2024 for the expansion of the campus of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland-Medical University of Bahrain in the Al-Sayh area of Muharraq Governorate.

Kuwait

For the second year running, Turkiye’s Limak Holding has strengthened its position at the top of Kuwait’s ranking. The contractor has $6.1bn of construction work at the execution stage, according to MEED Projects. This is about $500m more than the $5.6bn it had in 2024.

In October 2024, Limak was one of the contractors that secured work as part of more than KD400m ($1.3bn) of road maintenance works contracts that were awarded by the Public Works Ministry to 18 local and international companies.

The road work adds to Limak’s ongoing works at Kuwait International airport. In 2023, it secured a contract for package three of the expansion of Terminal 2, which covers the construction of aircraft parking aprons, taxiways and service buildings.

China Gezhouba Group Corporation is in second position. In March this year, it won two contracts worth over $557m from Kuwait’s Public Authority for Housing Welfare for the South Saad Al-Abdullah residential project in Al-Jahra Governorate.

China Gezhouba Group Corporation’s rise to second place shifts Shapoorji Pallonji into third place. The Indian contractor is working on two healthcare projects and one education scheme in a joint venture with the local Al-Sager General Trading & Contracting, which is also working on $1.4bn of projects at the execution stage.

Oman

The local Galfar Engineering & Contracting topped Oman’s 2024 ranking with $900m of work at the execution stage. In 2025, there are seven contractors in Oman that have more than $900m of construction work under execution, which reflects an increased level of projects activity across the sultanate. 

Galfar remains the top-ranked contractor in 2025 with $2.5bn of work at the execution phase. 

Last year, as part of a consortium with Abu Dhabi-based National Projects Construction, National Infrastructure Construction Company and Tristar Engineering & Construction, it won an estimated $1.5bn design-and-build contract for the Hafeet Railway project connecting the sultanate with the UAE. It also won a $119.5m contract from the Transport, Communication & Information Technology Ministry for the dualisation of the road connecting the city of Nizwa and the nearby town of Izki.

The overall uptick in projects activity in Oman has meant that the 10th-ranked contractor in 2025 has $500m of work at the execution stage compared to just $200m for the 10th-ranked contractor in 2024. 

Qatar

UCC Holding leads the Qatar ranking in 2025. The local firm was ranked the fifth most active contractor in 2024 with $1.2bn of projects at the execution stage. That total has increased to $1.3bn this year, and with the Qatar construction market remaining subdued after the Fifa World Cup in 2022, it is enough to take UCC to the top of the ranking. 

The contractor’s main ongoing projects are part of the country’s public-private partnership schools scheme. Earlier this year, it signed an estimated $330m deal covering the design, build and maintenance of 14 schools in several areas of Qatar.

UCC Holding also has two major road schemes under execution for the Public Works Authority (Ashghal). UCC is in a joint venture with Infraroad Trading & Contracting Company for both projects. 

The first contract, valued at $170m, covers the construction of the roads and infrastructure works in Al-Mearad and southwest of Muaither. The other, valued at $150m, covers the construction of roads and infrastructure works in the Al-Kharaitiyat and Izghawa areas of Doha.

UCC replaces Turkiye’s TAV Construction and the local Midmac Contracting Company, which jointly held the top ranking position in 2024 with $1.4bn of projects at the execution phase thanks to the terminal expansion programme at Hamad International airport. 

The expansion, which has added 51,000 square metres of space to the airport, including eight new gates, opened in February this year.

Saudi Arabia

There was an expectation in 2024 that Saudi Arabia’s contractor ranking would be transformed in 2025 as development activity accelerated on projects across the kingdom. 

While activity in the kingdom continues, the pace of awards has levelled off as the government and the Public Investment Fund (PIF) have begun to prioritise projects. This drive to rationalise the projects market can be seen in the contractor ranking for 2025. 

Like last year, Nesma tops the list, with $13.9bn of work at the execution stage. This total is less than the $14.7bn of projects that the local contractor had in 2024. 

China State Construction Engineering Company is in second with $9.3bn of projects under execution. The Beijing-based contractor has risen up the ranking from 10th place last year, when it had $3.9bn of projects under execution.

The largest new contract that the firm has secured in the past year is a $3bn scheme to deliver 2,000 housing units for the National Housing Company at several locations in the kingdom. 

China State is joined in the top 10 in 2025 by another Chinese contractor: China Harbour Engineering Corporation, which is in 10th place with $5.6bn of work. One of its recent wins was in June last year, when it secured an $800m contract in joint venture with Al-Ayuni Investment & Contracting for the construction works on the second southern ring road in Riyadh.

China Harbour replaces Greece’s Archirodon, which has dropped out of the Saudi top 10 in 2025. The other contractors in the 2025 top 10 ranking remain from 2024. 

UAE

There is no change at the top of the UAE contractor ranking, as Abu Dhabi-based Trojan General Contracting once again leads in 2025. The firm has $7.2bn of projects under execution this year, compared to $6.2bn in 2024.

There have been significant changes to the companies making up the rest of the ranking, however, and to the value of projects that contractors have under execution. This reflects a shift in the market in 2024, as government-backed infrastructure projects moved into construction. 

In 2024, the second-ranked contractor was Abu Dhabi-based National Marine Dredging Company with $3.1bn of projects under execution – a total that would not even make the top 10 in 2025. This year, it is the fifth-ranked contractor, with $4.7bn-worth of projects.

In 2025, the second-ranked contractor is Turkiye’s Mapa with $6bn of projects – thanks largely to a contract it secured in December 2024 for the Blue Line extension of Dubai Metro. Mapa is joined by China’s CRRC Corporation in third place and Turkiye’s Limak in fourth, which are also working on the Blue Line project. 

Abu Dhabi-headquartered Arabian Construction Company is the sixth-ranked contractor with $4.5bn. The firm, which specialises in high-end building projects, returns to the top 10 amid reports that it is planning to list on the stock market with an initial public offering.

The other contractors in the UAE’s top 10 listing are Beijing-based China State Construction Engineering Corporation, India’s Sobha, UK-headquartered Innovo and the local Alec. 

Alec has dropped from fourth position in 2024 to 10th this year, despite increasing the value of projects under execution from $2.6bn to $3.3bn, which reflects how much contractors’ orderbooks have filled up over the past year.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/13767362/main.gif
Colin Foreman

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

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Jordan sets market briefing for Amman water PPP

    10 April 2026

    Jordan’s Ministry of Investment, through its Public-Private Partnership Unit (PPPU), has announced a public information session for the South Amman non-revenue water (NRW) reduction PPP project.

    The session will be held on 15 April and is being organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Water & Irrigation and Miyahuna, according to a notice published by the PPPU. 

    The project covers the southern and southeastern areas of Amman and aims to reduce water losses and improve the efficiency of the capital’s distribution network.

    According to the ministry, the scheme will serve about 1.4 million people across 17 zones and forms part of Jordan’s wider National Water Strategy. 

    The planned market briefing is intended to provide early detail on the project’s PPP structure, procurement pathway and performance-based contracting model.

    It is also expected to outline the project’s risk allocation and bankability framework to prospective investors, operators and infrastructure companies.

    The Ministry of Investment opened prequalification for the scheme in March.

    Qualified companies and consortiums have been invited to participate in a two-stage procurement process for the performance-based contract. 

    The project aims to reduce NRW levels to 25% by 2040, while modernising and expanding the existing network using smart technologies and advanced leak detection systems. 

    The original deadline was 23 April. That has since been extended to 12 May.

    Jordan is among the most water-scarce countries in the world, and losses from distribution networks are estimated to account for about 45% of water supplied.

    The country is also advancing its $6bn Aqaba-Amman water desalination and conveyance project that aims to meet about 40% of Jordan’s municipal water demand by 2040.

    As MEED recently reported, the project is nearing financial close. Once complete, it will supply about 300 million cubic metres of potable water a year from the Red Sea to Amman and other regions.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16340931/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • OQ allows more time for natural gas liquids project proposals

    10 April 2026

     

    Omani state energy conglomerate OQ Group has allowed contractors more time to prepare proposals for a major project to build a natural gas liquids (NGL) facility in the sultanate.

    The planned NGL facility will extract condensates in Saih Nihayda in central Oman and transport those volumes to Duqm, located along the sultanate’s Arabian Sea coastline, for fractionation and export, OQ Group has said.

    OQ Group intends to deliver the project using a front-end engineering and design (feed)-to-engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) competition model.

    The state enterprise issued the main tender for the feed-to-EPC competition “earlier in March”, setting an initial deadline of 8 April for contractors to submit proposals, MEED previously reported. The deadline has now been extended to 6 May, according to sources.

    MEED previously reported that OQ had started the prequalification process for the feed-to-EPC contest for the planned NGL project in November last year, with contractors submitting responses by 15 December.

    The following contractors, among others, are understood to have been invited to participate in the feed-to-EPC contest for OQ’s planned NGL project, sources told MEED:

    • Chiyoda (Japan) / CTCI (Taiwan)
    • G S Engineering & Construction (South Korea)
    • Hyundai Engineering & Construction (South Korea) / KBR (US)
    • JGC Corporation (Japan)
    • Kent (UAE)
    • Petrofac (UK)
    • Saipem (Italy)
    • Samsung E&A (South Korea) / Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India) / Wood (UAE)
    • Technip Energies (France)
    • Tecnicas Reunidas (Spain)
    • Tecnimont (Italy)

    The scope of work on the project covers the development, verification and integration of feed deliverables for the following facilities and systems:

    • NGL extraction facility – Saih Nihayda:
      • Verification and updating of the existing feed to enable dual-mode operation (ethane recovery and ethane rejection).
      • Identification and implementation of required process, equipment, utilities, and control system modifications.
         
    • NGL Pipeline – Saih Nihayda to Duqm:
      Feed for a new approximately 230km NGL transmission pipeline, including routing, hydraulics, stations, pigging facilities, metering, corrosion protection, leak detection, and safety systems.
       
    • Fractionation unit at Duqm:
      • Feed for a new fractionation facility to process ethane and propane + NGL and recover propane, butane, condensate, and provision for future ethane recovery.
      • Design accommodating licensed or open-art technology and future tie-in to a planned petrochemical project in Duqm.
         
    • Product pipelines, storage and export facilities at Duqm jetty:
      • Feed for product pipelines, cryogenic and atmospheric storage tanks, vapour recovery systems, marine loading arms, and export facilities.
      • Integration with existing port and refinery infrastructure, where feasible.
         
    • Supporting systems and studies:
      Utilities, offsites, flare systems, safety and environmental studies, cost estimates (class 2+10%), project schedules, constructability assessments, and EPC tender documentation.
    Natural gas liquids projects

    Gulf national oil companies have been allocating significant capital expenditure to building or expanding NGL production facilities.

    QatarEnergy, in September last year, awarded the main EPC contract for its project to add a fifth NGL train at its fractionation complex in Qatar’s Mesaieed Industrial City. The aim of the project, which is estimated to be worth $2.5bn, is to build a fifth NGL train (NGL-5) with the capacity to process up to 350 million cubic feet a day of rich associated gas from QatarEnergy’s offshore and onshore oil fields.

    The main EPC contract for the QatarEnergy NGL-5 project was won by a consortium of India’s Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbons Onshore and Greece-headquartered Consolidated Contractors Group.

    Separately, the gas processing business of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc Gas) has also selected the main contractor for a project to install a fifth NGL fractionation train at its Ruwais gas processing facility in Abu Dhabi.

    The fifth NGL fractionation train will have an output capacity of 22,000 tonnes a day, or about 8 million tonnes a year.

    The Ruwais NGL Train 5 project represents the second phase of Adnoc Gas’ ambitious Rich Gas Development (RGD) programme, and its budget value is estimated to be around $4bn, Peter Van Driel, Adnoc Gas’ chief financial officer, confirmed in February. The company expects to achieve final investment decision on the project within the first quarter of 2026, Van Driel said at the time.

    ALSO READ: PDO awards Oman gas plant expansion project
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16340039/main5958.jpg
    Indrajit Sen
  • Masdar’s move abroad will not be the last

    10 April 2026

    Commentary
    Mark Dowdall
    Power & water editor

    Masdar’s new joint-venture agreement with France’s TotalEnergies will not be the last time we see regional energy investors use strong balance sheets and domestic growth to build larger positions overseas.

    For Masdar in particular, the deal broadens its international exposure at a time when investors are asking questions about the Middle East’s geopolitical risk.

    By combining portfolios, the two companies start with 3GW of operational capacity and another 6GW in advanced development.

    The deal covers nine Asian countries, reflecting a prudent strategy that spreads capital across markets with different risk profiles and growth trajectories.

    In Kazakhstan, which already includes 2.6GW of assets under development, there is clear logic behind this move.

    The country is expected to see a significant increase in renewable generation over the next decade, supported by strong wind resources and the availability of large land areas for utility-scale developments.

    There is also a practical advantage in partnering with TotalEnergies, which already has project delivery experience and an established presence in several of these markets.

    The US-Iran ceasefire announced on 8 April has brought some respite to energy infrastructure stakeholders in the region.

    For investors and developers, however, the long-term uncertainty remains. Until there is clear evidence of regime change, the removal of sanctions or lasting peace in the region, the outlook will be less clear.

    With uncertainty one of the biggest killers of investor confidence, many will now be looking at this agreement and thinking whether they should also follow suit.

    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/16340038/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • Turkish firm launches Mecca villas project

    10 April 2026

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Turkish real estate investment firm Emlak Konut has announced the launch of Hayat Makkah, its first development in Saudi Arabia.

    The project is part of the National Housing Company’s (NHC) wider Mecca Gate masterplan.

    According to the company, Hayat Makkah will feature 1,014 villas, with home sizes ranging from 150 to 5,000 square metres.

    NHC and Emlak Konut signed an investment agreement worth over SR1bn ($266m) in November last year to develop the project.

    The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Cityscape Global 2025 event in Riyadh.

    Ertan Keles, chairman of Emlak Konut, said the firm is in talks with stakeholders about launching a second project, while a third development is also being lined up in Jeddah.

    GlobalData expects the Saudi Arabian construction industry to grow by 3.6% in real terms in 2026, supported by an increase in foreign direct investment (FDI) and investments in the housing and manufacturing sectors.

    The residential construction sector is expected to grow by 3.8% in real terms in 2026 and register an average annual growth rate of 4.7% between 2027 and 2030, supported by the country’s aim – under Saudi Vision 2030 – to increase homeownership from 65.4% in 2024 to 70% by 2030, including by building 600,000 homes by 2030.

    According to the General Authority for Statistics, Saudi Arabia attracted a net FDI inflow of SR72.3bn ($19.3bn) in the first nine months of 2025, an increase of 32.7% year-on-year (YoY) compared to the same period in 2024.

    Similarly, the total value of real estate loans from banks grew by 11.5% YoY in 2025, preceded by an annual growth of 13.3% in 2024, according to the Saudi Central Bank (Sama).

    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/16340004/main.png
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Kuwait gives bidders more time for Al-Khairan IWPP

    10 April 2026

     

    Kuwait has extended bidding for the first phase of the Al-Khairan independent water and power producer (IWPP) project.

    The project is being procured by the Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (Kapp) and the Ministry of Electricity, Water & Renewable Energy (MEWRE).

    The facility will have a capacity of 1,800MW and 150,000 cubic metres a day of desalinated water. It will be located in Al-Khairan, adjacent to the Al-Zour South thermal plant.

    The new deadline is 30 April. The original deadline was 31 March.

    The main contract was tendered last September. Three consortiums and two individual companies were previously prequalified to participate.

    These include:

    • Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) / A H Al-Sagar & Brothers (Saudi Arabia) / Jera (Japan)
    • Acwa (Saudi Arabia) / Gulf Investment Corporation (Kuwait)
    • China Power / Malakoff International (Malaysia) / Abdul Aziz Al-Ajlan Sons (Saudi Arabia)
    • Nebras Power (Qatar)                                                                                                                                        
    • Sumitomo Corporation (Japan)

    The Al-Khairan IWPP project is part of Kuwait’s long-term plan to expand power and water production capacity through public-private partnerships (PPPs).

    The winning bidder will sign a set of PPP agreements covering financing, design, construction, operation and transfer of the project.

    The energy conversion and water purchase agreement is expected to cover a 25-year supply period.

    Kapp extended another deadline recently for a contract to develop zone two of the third phase of the Al-Dibdibah power and Al-Shagaya renewable energy project.

    The PPP authority is procuring the 500MW solar photovoltaic independent power project (IPP) in partnership with the ministry.

    The bid submission deadline was moved to the end of April, a source close to the project told MEED.

    According to the MEWRE, the total generation capacity currently offered under partnership projects has reached 6,100MW, equivalent to about 30% of Kuwait’s existing power capacity.

    The ministry and Kapp are also preparing to tender the main contract for the 3,600MW Nuwaiseeb power and water desalination plant after plans were approved by Kuwait’s Council of Ministers last November.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16339960/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall