Driving tech in the Middle East
20 December 2024
Heading into 2025, a spate of technological breakthroughs are set to fundamentally reshape industries worldwide, driving unprecedented innovation across critical sectors.
Cutting-edge developments in artificial intelligence (AI), renewable energy, digital currencies, transportation and healthcare are converging to create transformative opportunities, according to the Tech Predictions 2025 report by GlobalData Thematic Intelligence.
AI stands at the forefront of this technological revolution, with generative models and autonomous systems pushing the boundaries of what is possible.
Simultaneously, advancements in battery technology and mineral exploration are accelerating the global transition to sustainable energy solutions.
In the Middle East, these global technological trends are not just being adopted but actively amplified
Emerging technologies such as blockchain are revolutionising finance, while the mobility sector is being reshaped by autonomous and electric transportation technologies.
Healthcare is experiencing a digital renaissance, leveraging AI, telemedicine and bio-technology to deliver more personalised and accessible medical services.
The future of work is being redefined by hybrid models and sophisticated digital collaboration tools, all underpinned by increasingly robust cybersecurity innovations that protect against evolving digital threats.
Regional priorities
In the Middle East, these global technological trends are not just being adopted but actively amplified through strategic national initiatives.
Regional governments and enterprises are making significant investments in AI-driven startups, renewable energy infrastructure and advanced technologies. From pioneering smart city projects like Neom to emerging leadership in cryptocurrency and gaming industries, the Middle East is positioning itself as a global innovation hub.
The region’s commitment to technological diversification is evident in its targeted investments across multiple sectors.
Global technology giants are establishing significant cloud and data centre infrastructure, while local initiatives in health tech, gaming and digital innovation are gaining international recognition.
These efforts collectively demonstrate the Middle East’s strategic vision to transform its economic landscape and establish a prominent role in the global digital economy.
By embracing these technological advancements, the region is not merely adapting to global trends, but actively shaping a more interconnected, sustainable and digitally sophisticated future.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
The global AI market is on a trajectory of major growth, with projections indicating it will surpass $1tn by the end of the decade.
Generative AI is emerging as a particularly transformative capability, promising to drive growth through unprecedented automation and a reimagining of traditional business models.
Another emerging trend is the increasing focus on small language models (SLMs), which offer greater cost-effectiveness, enhanced security and simplified management over their larger counterparts and are especially powerful in domain-specific applications.
Big tech firms such as Microsoft, Open AI and Amazon are well-positioned in both the generative AI and SLM spaces.
Looking ahead, the next technological frontier appears to be agentic AI – intelligent, autonomous systems that are capable of sophisticated multi-step reasoning and dynamic context adaptation. This holds immense potential and could revolutionise efficiency and customer experiences across diverse sectors.
Market winners will successfully develop and implement enterprise AI solutions while laggards risk obsolescence.
The Middle East is positioning itself as a global AI innovation hub, with countries including the UAE and Saudi Arabia investing heavily in areas such as AI governance, autonomous systems and smart city technologies.
Projects like Saudi Arabia’s Neom and Dubai’s smart city initiatives are integrating AI for urban management, enhancing infrastructure and optimising public services through real-time data analysis.
DATA CENTRES
The demand for AI-ready data centres is surging as cloud providers like Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud expand their capabilities to host advanced AI models, such as Open AI’s GPT-4. According to GlobalData, total investment in data centres reached $70.6bn in 2024 and is projected to grow by 5% to $74.3bn in 2025.
This rapid growth is bringing challenges such as power shortages and increasing pressure from governments to reduce energy consumption in alignment with climate targets.
The International Energy Agency estimates that data centre electricity consumption will hit 1,000 terawatt-hours by 2026, doubling from 2023 levels. To meet this rising demand sustainably, tech giants are turning to low-carbon energy solutions, including solar, wind, biofuel and nuclear power.
The Middle East data centre market is experiencing rapid growth, driven by increased digital adoption and internet access. The region’s data centre construction market is projected to reach $4.39bn by 2029, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 10.99%.
The UAE has the highest concentration of data centres, while Saudi Arabia is the fastest-growing regional market, attracting global players like Google and Huawei.
Sustainability initiatives are also gaining traction, with both countries aiming for significant renewable energy integration in their power mix.
Overall, the Middle East and North Africa region is poised for major investment in the development of data infrastructure.
The region’s data centre construction market is projected to reach $4.39bn by 2029
CYBERSECURITY
The cybersecurity landscape is undergoing a transformation, with the market projected to expand to $208.5bn by 2025, representing a 10% growth from $188.8bn in 2024.
This growth will be accompanied by increasingly sophisticated threats that leverage AI to create more complex and dangerous cyber attacks.
AI is shaping both defensive and offensive cybersecurity strategies. Cybercriminals are now utilising generative AI to craft more convincing phishing attempts and develop more advanced malware.
The scale of this threat is alarming, with AI-powered malware attacks surging by an extraordinary 275% in 2024 compared to 2023, presenting unprecedented challenges for cybersecurity vendors and organisations worldwide.
Ransomware attacks continue to escalate, with criminals estimated to have extracted $1.1bn in ransom payments during 2023.
The democratisation of cyber attack tools through AI and ransomware-as-a-service platforms is making more sophisticated attacks increasingly accessible to less technically skilled individuals.
While direct ransom payments remain unbanned, emerging regulations are expected to introduce mandatory breach reporting and enhance international collaborative efforts to combat these threats.
In line with global trends, cybersecurity is a growing concern in the Middle East, with governments and enterprises prioritising advanced cyber defence strategies, including AI-based security solutions and regional collaboration to enhance risk assessment, address cyber risks and detect fraud.
CRYPTOCURRENCIES
The digital financial landscape is undergoing a transformation as cryptocurrencies are increasingly accepted by institutional investors as a mainstream asset.
This, alongside regulatory developments that could create a more favorable environment for digital asset adoption, are positioning the sector for significant growth in 2025.
The anticipated regulatory approach suggests increased institutional interest and broader mainstream acceptance of cryptocurrency technologies.
The US is expected to develop a more accommodating regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies, potentially reducing enforcement barriers and creating a more welcoming global environment for financial innovation. This shift could make it easier for financial institutions to invest in and manage crypto assets, signalling a potential mainstream breakthrough for digital currencies.
The Middle East is similarly emerging as a cryptocurrency hub, with Dubai leading in regulatory frameworks and blockchain innovation.
Crypto exchanges, tokenised real estate projects and interest in decentralised finance are gaining momentum throughout the region.
HEALTH TECH
The healthcare industry stands on the cusp of a technological revolution, with AI and three-dimensional (3D) printing poised to transform medical care and patient outcomes.
AI is rapidly emerging as a game-changing technology in the fields of medical diagnostics and imaging.
Computer vision technologies are already demonstrating remarkable capabilities in assisting radiologists, enabling quicker and more precise identification of abnormalities in medical scans.
This technological frontier is experiencing explosive growth, with the global computer vision market projected to expand from $19bn in 2023 to $125.1bn by 2030, signalling the immense potential of AI in healthcare.
Also emerging as a revolutionary technology in healthcare, 3D printing enables the production of highly personalised medical devices such as prosthetics and implants.
This technology promises to dramatically reduce production costs while providing customised solutions tailored to individual patient needs.
The 3D-printing healthcare market is forecast to grow from $1.4bn in 2023 to $9bn by 2035, reflecting the technology’s enormous potential to reshape medical device manufacturing.
In the Middle East region, governments are investing in health tech startups that are adopting emerging technologies, including the use of AI analytics or predictive diagnostics and telemedicine based on patient data, as a means of enhancing healthcare access and boosting efficiency.
FUTURE OF WORK
The future of work is undergoing a profound metamorphosis, with technology emerging as the primary catalyst for transforming traditional workplace environments. This evolution promises a more dynamic, collaborative ecosystem in which human capabilities are augmented and enhanced by digital technologies.
Generative AI is poised to become a cornerstone of workplace innovation, capable of driving unprecedented levels of automation and business process optimisation.
The generative AI market is projected to reach $75.7bn by 2028, reflecting the huge potential of these intelligent systems to reshape organisational productivity and efficiency.
Hybrid working models are rapidly transitioning from experimental approaches to standard operational practices.
Despite some organisations advocating for a return to traditional office environments, sophisticated collaboration technologies are enabling employees to work effectively across diverse settings. This flexibility represents more than a temporary trend – it signifies a fundamental reimagining of workplace dynamics and productivity.
Talent acquisition and development will face significant challenges as digital technologies continue to evolve.
Automation, AI, augmented reality, virtual reality and digital twin technologies are creating an urgent need for comprehensive workforce upskilling.
By 2025, proficiency in data management and generative AI tools will become an expected competency across various professional roles, not merely for technical positions.
Remote work and hybrid models are being embraced, driven by investments in digital infrastructure and upskilling initiatives. AI-driven human resources tools and collaboration platforms are helping to shape a more flexible and digitally enabled workforce in the Middle East.
GAMING
The gaming software industry is poised for significant growth, with projections indicating an expansion from $219bn in 2023 to $246bn by 2025, and an ambitious target of $337bn by 2030.
This trajectory is being driven by transformative technologies including AI, augmented reality, virtual reality, e-sports and cloud gaming.
Co-streaming is emerging as a revolutionary approach to content delivery in the increasingly popular field of e-sports, enabling several streamers to broadcast events simultaneously.
In 2024, content created by co-streamers demonstrated significantly higher engagement rates compared to official streams, a trend expected to continue gaining momentum in 2025. This innovative approach is reshaping audience interaction and creating new monetisation opportunities.
The boundaries between streaming platforms and social media are becoming increasingly blurred. Platforms such as Twitch and YouTube are integrating with social media applications such as TikTok and Instagram, enabling real-time interactions and creating enhanced monetisation channels.
This convergence represents a fundamental transformation in how gaming content is created, shared and consumed.
The Middle East is rapidly emerging as a significant gaming ecosystem, with substantial investments in e-sports, mobile gaming and local game development. Saudi Arabia, in particular, is positioning itself as a global gaming hub through strategic initiatives like the Savvy Gaming Group.
FUTURE MOBILITY
The future of mobility is poised for a radical transformation, driven by technological innovation and evolving societal needs. Emerging trends such as autonomous vehicles, electric mobility, shared transportation, electrification and enhanced connectivity are reshaping how people and goods will move in the coming years.
China is emerging as a global leader in both electric and autonomous vehicle technology, and in the case of the latter is positioning itself to be the first to deploy commercial Level 4 autonomous driving at scale.
Benefitting from supportive government policies and more relaxed regulatory environments, China is advancing faster than the US in autonomous vehicle development.
Breakthrough advances in battery technology are meanwhile set to unlock new frontiers in mobility, particularly for electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles.
Innovations in lithium-ion and solid-state battery technologies are expected to make commercial eVTOL operations viable within the next 12-18 months. Solid-state batteries are particularly promising, offering superior energy efficiency, rapid charging capabilities and enhanced durability that could revolutionise aerial transportation.
The Middle East is likewise witnessing transformations in mobility that include the expansion of electric vehicles, autonomous transport pilots and innovative urban mobility solutions like smart public transit systems. Projects such as Neom in Saudi Arabia are setting the stage for futuristic transportation networks.
Autonomous vehicles and electric mobility are reshaping how people and goods will be transported
BATTERIES
The lithium-ion battery market is poised for substantial growth, with projections indicating an expansion from $130.5bn in 2023 to an impressive $408.3bn by 2035. This trajectory represents a consistent 10% annual growth rate, reflecting the increasing global demand for advanced energy storage solutions.
Lithium-ion batteries will maintain their technological supremacy, characterised by superior energy density and rapid charging capabilities. Simultaneously, sodium-ion batteries are emerging as an intriguing alternative, attracting significant investment.
Geopolitical complexities and potential mineral supply disruptions – particularly concerning lithium, nickel and cobalt – are anticipated to create temporary global battery shortages. Despite ongoing advances in recycling technologies, these supply-chain challenges will pose significant obstacles for manufacturers and consumers alike.
With the push for renewable energy and electric vehicles, the Middle East is exploring advanced battery technologies. Efforts are being made to localise battery production and establish strategic partnerships for energy storage solutions that are tailored to the region’s climatic conditions.
Morocco is planning to establish the region’s first battery gigafactory, with a planned capacity of 20 gigawatt-hours annually, focusing on electric vehicle batteries.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is also establishing battery manufacturing capabilities to meet growing demand for lithium-ion batteries due to investments in renewable energy projects and EV adoption.
MINERALS
The global demand for critical minerals is experiencing an unprecedented surge, driven by ambitious net-zero targets and the rapid adoption of transformative energy transition technologies. Lithium, copper, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements have become pivotal resources in the production of electric vehicles, solar panels and wind farms, creating significant pressure on mineral prices and global supply chains.
China’s historical monopoly on rare earth element production has gradually diminished, with its market share dropping from a near-total 97% in 2010 to approximately 70% today.
While other nations are pursuing diversification strategies, China remains a dominant force in both rare earth element production and refinement, maintaining substantial control over this critical market segment.
Latin America is emerging as a crucial player in the critical minerals landscape. Countries like Argentina, Bolivia and Chile boast extensive lithium reserves, while Brasil holds the world’s third-largest rare earth element reserves. This geological wealth positions the region as a potential game-changer in global mineral supply.
The Middle East region’s focus on economic diversification has likewise spurred interest in mining critical minerals. Significant mining projects are under way, including copper and gold projects in Oman and expansions of existing gold mines in Saudi Arabia.
There is a regional race to secure lithium deposits and access to other rare earth elements necessary for the technology and energy sectors.
GLOBALDATA REPORTS
This article was written by GlobalData Thematic Intelligence. Click here to see more thematic research.
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Egypt raises gas prices by 30% amid Iran war
11 March 2026
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Egypt’s Petroleum & Mineral Resources Ministry increased the price of several petroleum products and natural gas for vehicles on 9 March, according to official statements.
The price of natural gas for vehicles has been put up by 30% to E£13 ($0.25) a cubic metre.
The price of diesel has gone up by 17% to E£20.5 a litre, while 95-octane petrol has been put up by 14.2% to E£24 a litre.
The new prices were put into effect early on 10 March and come amid soaring global energy prices in the wake of the US and Israel attacking Iran on 28 February.
Egypt’s Petroleum & Mineral Resources Ministry said: “This comes in light of exceptional circumstances resulting from geopolitical developments in the Middle East and their direct impact on global energy markets, which have led to a significant increase in import and domestic production costs.
“Disruptions in supply chains, increased risk levels and higher shipping and insurance costs have resulted in a substantial surge in global crude oil and petroleum product prices, levels not seen in energy markets for years.”
The statement also said that Egypt is continuing efforts to boost domestic production and reduce the country’s import bill.
Egypt, the Middle East and North Africa region’s biggest liquefied natural gas (LNG) importer, is facing uncertainty over its LNG supplies in coming months.
Between March 2025 and February 2026, Egypt imported 9,440 kilotonnes of LNG, with the majority of its imports purchased through short-term agreements, mainly with third parties like trading houses.
Last year, it was reported that Egypt had signed deals for around 150 cargoes through to the summer of 2026.
While much of Egypt’s LNG is likely to come from the US, and will not be directly impacted by the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the recent surge in LNG prices could mean that the North African country will struggle to afford shipments.
Exacerbating the need for increased LNG imports, on 28 February, Israel shut down production from its offshore gas fields due to security concerns, cutting pipeline exports to Egypt.
Prior to the fields being taken offline, Egypt was importing about 1.1 billion cubic feet a day from the Tamar and Leviathan fields.
On 4 March, addressing concerns about energy supplies in the country, Prime Minister of Egypt Mostafa Madbouly said that Egypt had just concluded “several contracts” to procure gas shipments at “preferential prices”, in cooperation with several countries and international companies.
However, he did not provide details about the exact pricing of the deals.
On top of the LNG deals Egypt has with trading houses, in January, Cairo signed a memorandum of understanding with Qatar related to 2026 LNG imports.
The preliminary deal included plans for 24 LNG deliveries through the summer of this year, when energy demand typically peaks.
Now, the shuttering of Qatar’s export terminals and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz are casting a shadow over the deal and there is increased uncertainty over whether these deliveries will be executed.
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Delays expected to $3.3bn Kuwait gas project due to Iran war
11 March 2026
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Significant delays are now expected for state-owned Kuwait Gulf Oil Company's (KGOC's) planned tender for the development of an onshore gas plant next to the Al-Zour refinery, according to industry sources.
The project budget is estimated to be $3.3bn and the last meeting with contractors to discuss the project took place in Kuwait on 10 February.
In February, contractors were told to expect the invitation to bid to be issued in late March, but this schedule is now expected to be extended significantly due to uncertainties created by the US and Israel attacking Iran on 28 February
Under current plans, the plant will have the capacity to process up to 632 million cubic feet a day (cf/d) of gas and 88.9 million barrels a day of condensates from the Dorra offshore field, located in Gulf waters in the Saudi-Kuwait Neutral Zone.
Ownership of the field is disputed by Iran, which refers to the field as Arash.
Iran claims the field partially extends into Iranian territory and asserts that Tehran should be a stakeholder in its development.
One source said: “Developing this gas field in the waters so close to Iran will be impossible in the current security environment.
“Everyone is expecting extended delays to progress on this project and all related projects, such as the planned onshore processing facility in Kuwait.
“The offshore elements of the project would be especially vulnerable to attacks from Iran and there are likely to be security concerns over the development of this field for some time to come.”
In July last year, MEED reported that KGOC had initiated the project by launching an early engagement process with contractors for the main engineering, procurement and construction tender.
France-based Technip Energies completed the contract for the front-end engineering and design.
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Sharakat plan signals next phase of Saudi water expansion
10 March 2026
Sharakat, formerly Saudi Water Partnership Company, released its latest seven-year statement in March, outlining the next phase of the kingdom’s water infrastructure plans.
According to the document, desalination capacity from Sharakat-procured projects is expected to rise from about 3.88 million cubic metres a day (cm/d) in 2025 to roughly 7.18 million cm/d by 2031, reflecting the continued reliance on desalinated water to meet rising urban demand.
The expansion will be supported by seven additional independent water plants (IWPs) with a combined capacity of about 2.8 million cm/d, alongside projects already operating, under construction or in procurement.
Against this backdrop, 2025 proved to be the busiest year for desalination awards since before the Covid-19 pandemic. Total water infrastructure awards also remained strong at $10bn, despite dipping on the two previous years.
Desalination projects accounted for $2.2bn across four schemes. The largest award was the $700m Shoaiba 6 seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination plant, which will have a capacity of 500,000 cm/d.
Another key development came when Sharakat awarded the contract to develop the Ras Mohaisen IWP on the Red Sea coast.
The project will treat 300,000 cm/d of seawater using reverse osmosis technology and will supply areas including Mecca and Al-Bahah. The developer consortium is led by Acwa Power, which holds a 45% stake, alongside Haji Abdullah Ali Reza & Partners with 35% and Al-Kifah Holding with 20%.
Transmission projects
Large transmission infrastructure continues to move forwards, with new contracts reaching $6.2bn in 2025, more than 60% of total awards.
This includes a contract with Sharakat to develop and operate the kingdom’s second independent water transmission pipeline (IWTP) project. The winning consortium comprises local firms Aljomaih Energy & Water, Nesma Company and Buhur for Investment Company.
The 587-kilometre (km) pipeline, capable of transporting 650,000 cm/d of water, will link Jubail in the Eastern Province with Buraydah in the Qassim region. Construction is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2026.
In December, local firm Vision Invest was named as the preferred bidder to develop and operate the 859km Riyadh-Qassim IWTP, Sharakat’s third IWTP project.
Vision Invest’s offer to develop the project with a levelised tariff of SR2.627 ($0.70) a cubic metre was almost 20% lower than the next nearest bidder
Further transmission projects are also advancing through Saudi Arabia’s Water Transmission Company (WTCO).
Bidding opened in September for the Jubail-Buraydah transmission scheme and the Ras Mohaisen-Baha-Mecca independent water transmission system, which together will deliver more than 1.38 million cm/d of water across central and western Saudi Arabia. An initial deadline was set for the end of the year, although this has been extended several times.
WTCO has also issued a tender for the construction of a $700m IWTP project in Qassim, including a 350km water transmission pipeline and 11 storage tanks. The main contract bids are expected in the coming weeks.
Storage and wastewater treatment
Saudi Arabia’s national water strategy aims to build reserves equivalent to seven days of municipal demand, requiring more than 115 million cubic metres of storage capacity by 2030.
Alongside this, Sharakat’s seven-year plan envisages wastewater treatment capacity rising from 1.79 million cm/d to about 3.19 million cm/d.
In February, a consortium of Saudi utilities provider Marafiq, the regional business of France’s Veolia and Bahrain/Saudi Arabia-based Lamar Holding reached financial close on a $500m wastewater treatment plant in Jubail Industrial City 2
The project will be developed under a concession-style model similar to a public-private partnership, with the developer consortium responsible for building and operating the plant over a 30-year period.
Some developers have also started to return to the Saudi water market, with Metito CEO, Rami Ghandour, explaining: “We took a break for a few years from bidding for municipal projects in the kingdom as we felt the market was overheating.”
A consortium of Metito, Etihad Water & Electricity (EtihadWE) and SkyBridge was named the preferred bidder for the Hadda independent sewage treatment (ISTP) in December with a levelised tariff of SR2.354 ($0.63) a cubic metre.
Meanwhile, a group comprising Miahona, Marafiq and Buhur for Investment Company was selected as the preferred bidder for the Arana ISTP with a levelised tariff of SR1.35 ($0.36) a cubic metre. Both the Hadda and Arana ISTP projects in Mecca Province are set to reach financial close this year.
Outlook
The project pipeline suggests that large transmission projects will continue drive contract activity. About $9.3bn of projects are currently under bid evaluation, with water pipeline schemes accounting for more than half, while a further $12bn of projects are in prequalification.
The request for proposals has already been issued for the Riyadh East ISTP, which will have a treatment capacity of 200,000 cm/d in its first phase, expanding to 400,000 cm/d in the second phase. The bid submission deadline is 2 April.
On the desalination front, IWP schemes at Ras Al-Khair, Tabuk, Shuqaiq and Jizan, have seen shifts in expected procurement timelines following earlier prequalification rounds.
The largest of these is phase two of the Ras Al-Khair IWP, which has been in development for more than a decade and involves the construction of a 600,000 cm/d reverse osmosis desalination plant.
According to the revised timeline, the $400m Al-Shuqaiq 4 IWP project will be the first of seven planned IWPs to reach commercial operations in 2029. The main contract is set to be tendered later this year.
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Ruwais industrial complex struck by drones
10 March 2026
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Abu Dhabi authorities are responding to a fire that has broken out at a facility in Ruwais industrial complex, caused by a drone attack.
The Ruwais industrial complex, located in Abu Dhabi's Al-Dhafra region, houses the world's fourth-largest single-site oil refinery and is operated by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc).
No injuries have been reported at this time, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said.
The UAE continues to intercept drones and missiles fired from Iran, as attacks on the Gulf countries continue for a 11th day in the ongoing regional conflict.
Apart from the Ruwais refining complex, which has a capacity of 922,000 barrels a day (b/d) of crude oil and condensates, Ruwais industrial complex is also home to petrochemicals producer Borouge’s main production complex.
Additionally, Adnoc is in an advanced stage of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) on a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project within the Ruwais industrial complex, which will have the capacity to produce about 9.6 million tonnes a year (t/y) of LNG from two processing trains, each with a capacity of 4.8 million t/y. When the project is commissioned, which is due to take place in 2028, Adnoc’s LNG production capacity will more than double to about 15 million t/y.
Separately, Taziz – a 60:40 joint venture of Adnoc Group and Abu Dhabi’s industrial holding company ADQ – is overseeing the development of at least seven specialty chemicals plants in its planned derivatives zone in Ruwais Industrial City.
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Contractors submit bids for Dorra offshore gas project packages
10 March 2026
Contractors have submitted bids to Al-Khafji Joint Operations (KJO) for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on a project to develop natural gas from the Dorra gas field, located in the waters of the Saudi-Kuwait Neutral Zone.
KJO, which is jointly owned by Saudi Aramco subsidiary Aramco Gulf Operations Company and Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) subsidiary Kuwait Gulf Oil Company (KGOC), has divided the project’s scope of work into four EPC packages – three offshore and one onshore.
Indian contractor Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (L&TEH) has won package one of the Dorra facilities project, which covers the EPC of seven offshore jackets and the laying of intra-field pipelines. The contract awarded by KJO to L&TEH is estimated to be valued at $140m-$150m, MEED reported in October.
Contractors submitted bids for the remaining three packages – offshore packages 2A and 2B and onshore package three by the final deadline of 9 March, according to sources.
Two consortiums of contractors submitted bids for the packages, sources told MEED:
- NMDC Energy (UAE) / Hyundai Heavy Industries (South Korea)
- Saipem (Italy) / Larsen and Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India)
KJO had extended the bid submission deadlines for these packages several times since last year.
The EPC scope of work for package 2A includes Dorra gas field wellhead topsides, flowlines and umbilicals. Package 2B involves the central gathering platform complex, export pipelines and cables. Package three includes the EPC of onshore gas processing facilities.
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are pressing ahead with their plan to jointly produce 1 billion cubic feet a day (cf/d) of gas from the Dorra gas field.
The two countries have been producing oil from the Neutral Zone – primarily from the onshore Wafra field and offshore Khafji field – since at least the 1950s. With a growing need to increase natural gas production, they have been working to exploit the Dorra offshore field, understood to be the only gas field in the Neutral Zone.
Discovered in 1965, the Dorra gas field is estimated to hold 20 trillion cubic metres of gas and 310 million barrels of oil.
The Dorra facilities scheme is one of three multibillion-dollar projects launched by subsidiaries of Saudi Aramco and KPC to produce and process gas from the Dorra field that has advanced in the past few months.
AGOC onshore Khafji gas plant
AGOC has set a current bid submission deadline of 22 April for seven EPC packages as part of a project to construct the Khafji gas plant, which will process gas from the Dorra field onshore Saudi Arabia.
MEED previously reported that AGOC issued main tenders for the seven EPC packages in 2025. Contractors were initially set deadlines of 24 October for technical bid submissions and 9 November for the submission of commercial bids, which was then extended by AGOC until 22 December.
The seven EPC packages cover a range of works, including open-art and licensed process facilities, pipelines, industrial support infrastructure, site preparation, overhead transmission lines, power supply systems and main operational and administrative buildings.
France-based Technip Energies has carried out a concept study and front-end engineering and design (feed) work on the entire Dorra gas field development programme.
Progress has been hampered by a geopolitical dispute over ownership of the Dorra gas field. Iran, which refers to the field as Arash, claims it partially extends into Iranian territory and asserts that Tehran should be a stakeholder in its development. Kuwait and Saudi Arabia maintain that the field lies entirely within their jointly administered Neutral Zone – also known as the Divided Zone – and that Iran has no legal basis for its claim.
In February 2024, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia reiterated their claim to the Dorra field in a joint statement issued during an official meeting in Riyadh of Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud.
Since that show of strength and unity, projects targeting the production and processing of gas from the Dorra field have gained momentum.
KGOC onshore processing facilities
KGOC has initiated early engagement with contractors for the main EPC tendering process for a planned Dorra onshore gas processing facility, which is to be located in Kuwait.
KGOC is at the feed stage of the project, which is estimated to be valued at up to $3.3bn. The firm is now expected to issue the main EPC tender within the first quarter of this year, MEED recently reported.
The proposed facility will receive gas from a pipeline from the Dorra offshore field, which is being separately developed by KJO. The complex will have the capacity to process up to 632 million cf/d of gas and 88.9 million barrels a day of condensates from the Dorra field.
The facility will be located near the Al-Zour refinery, owned by another KPC subsidiary, Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company.
A 700,000-square-metre plot has been allocated next to the Al-Zour refinery for the gas processing facility and discussions regarding survey work are ongoing. The site could require shoring, backfilling and dewatering.
The onshore gas processing plant will also supply surplus gas to KPC’s upstream business, Kuwait Oil Company, for possible injection into its oil fields.
Additionally, KGOC plans to award licensed technology contracts to US-based Honeywell UOP and Shell subsidiary Shell Catalysts & Technologies for the plant’s acid gas removal unit and sulphur recovery unit, respectively.
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