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  Kuwait airport expansion to be completed before 2027

  15 May 2025

  

   

  Kuwait’s long-delayed $5.8bn project to develop a second terminal at the country’s international airport is on track to be completed before the end of 2026, according to industry sources.

  One source said: “The project currently has good momentum and it should be completed before the start of 2027 if there are no significant problems.”

  Project execution for the second terminal started in 2017, and the completion date has been pushed back from the initial completion date for the project, which would have seen it finished in 2022.

  Earlier this month, Ahmad Al-Kreebani, the chief executive of state-owned Kuwait Airways, was fired and replaced by Abdulwahab Al-Shatti.

  Al-Kreebani’s dismissal after two years in the job followed a decision by the country’s civil aviation authority to withdraw its approval for his leadership of the airline, according to news reports.

  Over recent months, 14 airlines have exited from Kuwait International airport and suspended their operations in the country.

  These airlines included British Airways, Lufthansa, Air France, KLM and Singapore Airlines.

  These airlines continue to serve other Gulf hubs, such as Doha, Dubai and Riyadh, and have cited Kuwait’s economic unviability, substandard infrastructure and stagnant passenger growth as key reasons for their withdrawal.

  The second terminal project consists of three packages.

  These are:

  • Package 1: Main works – $4,329m
  • Package 2: Multistorey car park building, connection roads, bridges and landscaping works – $550m
  • Package 3: Aircraft parking, runways and service buildings – $950m

  Madrid-headquartered Ineco is executing package one.

  The second and third packages are both being executed by Turkey’s Limak Holding.

  Earlier this year, Ineco released a statement saying that the development would be “one of the most modern airport terminals in the world”.

  It said the building’s triangular shape was “inspired by the sails of traditional dhows”, a type of Arabic sailing vessel, usually with slanting triangular sails, common in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean.

  The company also said: “The aim of the Kuwait Airport … project is to enable the terminal to operate smoothly from day one.

  “To do this, we have to get the basis (construction, systems, employees and operations) perfectly aligned.

  “It is a challenge that requires the coordination of a large number of public bodies, consultants and contractors from different countries involved in the construction and future operation of the airport”.

  Ineco has previously worked on airport projects in the Spanish cities of Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga, Valencia and Alicante.

  It has also worked on airports in Abu Dhabi in the UAE and Newark in the US.

  The terminal building was designed by Foster+Partners and Gulf Consult.

  The scope of the main package includes the new terminal building, a building for the cooling and electricity supply facilities, a building for the water supply and the provision of the future Automatic People Mover (APM) connection to the satellite building.

  The terminal building will be three times the size of the original building and will have 36 boarding gates.

  Of the 36 gates, 30 will be contact gates and six will be for remote boarding.

  The building will cover more than 700,000 square metres and have five floors, one of which will be underground.

  It will have the capacity, at maximum service level, for 25 million passengers a year once the first phase has been completed and up to 50 million passengers after further phases are completed.

  The second package of works includes a new car park with approximately 5,000 parking spaces, connected to the new passenger terminal.

  It also includes all new access roads to the airport and landscaping.

  The scope of the third package comprises the main platform, new taxiways and several tunnels, including one under platform between the terminal building and the future cargo area of the airport.

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  Wil Crisp
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  Triple Bay reaches 72% completion rate

  15 May 2025

  

   

  Triple Bay, the wellness hub of Saudi Arabia’s Amaala development, has reached a completion rate of 72%, Ben Edwards, group head of cost, commercial and procurement at Red Sea Global, told the Saudi Gigaprojects summit organised by MEED and GlobalData in Riyadh on 13 May.

  The completion levels of the various properties, including hotels, a golf club and marina, at the scenic coastal development range from 64% to 88% and the race is on to reach their completion target dates, according to Edwards.

  The overall plan for Amaala entails the development of 30 resorts and 1,170 residences. The project’s first phase is expected to be completed in 2027.

  With the projects approaching completion, the next opportunity for partners and suppliers will be on the operations side of the assets.

  Edwards also said that the Thuwal Private Retreat, a new island resort off the Red Sea coast, has been completed.

  The project is Red Sea Global’s first development besides The Red Sea Project and Amaala, and is located on a 17,000 square-metre islet in a coral archipelago.

  The resort will have a three-bedroom villa, three one-bedroom suites, a beach club, gym and wellness centre.

  The destination will be wholly owned and operated by Red Sea Global.

  On 12 May, Edwards also said that the main passenger terminal building at the Red Sea International airport catering to the Red Sea and Amaala developments is expected to become fully operational in the next few months.

  Several hotels have been opened as part of the first phase of the development. According to Edwards, several other hotels are approaching completion in line with the developer’s commitment to deliver 25 hotels by 2025.

  The executive said construction work was completed last year for a private island, which is now open.

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  Jennifer Aguinaldo
• 
  Rejlers wins engineering contract on Borouge project

  14 May 2025

  

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  Rejlers Abu Dhabi, a subsidiary of Swedish engineering services firm Rejlers, has secured a detailed engineering job on a polyethylene production capacity expansion project of petrochemicals producer Borouge.

  Borouge has undertaken the project to expand its PE4 and PE5 polyethylene production units to increase their nameplate capacity from 540,000 tonnes a year (t/y) to 700,000 t/y each.

  Rejlers Abu Dhabi has secured the detailed engineering job as a sub-contract from Abu Dhabi’s Target Engineering Construction Company, the main contractor executing the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on the project.

  Borouge announced awarding the main EPC contract for the PE4 and PE5 polyethylene production unit expansion project to Target in late April.

  EPC works on the project are expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027, Borouge said.

  The project will contribute towards Borouge’s goal of increasing its overall production capacity to 6.6 million t/y by 2028.

  Borouge has also announced initiating a project to upgrade its second ethane cracker unit (EU2), adding 230,000 t/y of capacity, which is a 15% increase for the EU2 cracker.

  Adnoc Gas and Adnoc Refining, subsidiaries of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc Group), will supply ethane feedstock for the EU2 upgrade project, with completion scheduled for 2028-end.

  Borouge awarded Germany-headquartered Linde Engineering a contract to perform front-end engineering and design (feed) on the EU2 upgrade project.

  Borouge expects the two output capacity expansion projects to contribute between $165m and $200m in annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda).

  ALSO READ: Borouge awards hydrogen extraction project contract

  Borouge entered operations in 2001, with a production capacity of 450,000 t/y of polyethylene. The Borouge 2 and Borouge 3 expansion projects took the capacity to 2 million t/y and 4.5 million t/y of polyethylene and polypropylene in 2010 and 2014, respectively. 

  When the under-construction Borouge 4 complex enters operations, Borouge’s overall production capacity will increase significantly from 5 million t/y to 6.4 million t/y, making it the world’s largest single-site polyolefins facility.

  The upcoming Borouge 4 polyolefins complex will feature two polyethylene plants – each with a capacity of 700,000 t/y – using the third generation of Borealis Borstar technology. These plants will be supplied by an ethane cracker with a capacity of more than 1.5 million t/y of ethylene, as well as associated ethylene derivatives.

  Following the signing of a final investment decision agreement worth $6.2bn by Adnoc and Borealis in November 2021, Borouge awarded the main EPC contracts for the Borouge 4 project in December of that year.

  The EPC packages, the winning contractors, their estimated contract values and a brief scope of work are as follows:

  • Early works (package one) – Al-Asab General Transport & Contracting (UAE) – site preparation and early civil works
  • Ethane cracker (package two) – Technip Energies (France)/Target Engineering (UAE) – $1.58bn – building an ethane cracker with a manufacturing capacity of 1.5 million t/y of ethylene
  • Polymers production (package three) – Tecnimont (Italy) – $1.35bn – building two new polyethylene manufacturing plants and a unit to produce 1-hexene, a component in the production of high-performance polyethylene
  • Utilities and offsites (package four) – Tecnimont (Italy) – $1.5bn – constructing non-process buildings, roads, infrastructure, internal and external interfaces, tankage systems, flaring systems and utilities, as well as integration of Borouge 4 with the existing facilities
  • Second cross-linkable-polyethylene (XLPE) plant (package five) – Tecnimont (Italy) – $350m – building an XLPE plant with a capacity of 100,000 t/y.

  Italian contractor Maire Tecnimont executed the front-end engineering and design works for Borouge 4.

  Borouge awarded France-based Axens a contract to provide licensed technologies in January 2020. This covered supplying a methyl tertiary butyl ether unit coupled with a 1-butene production unit and 1-hexene unit for the project.

  The new Borouge 4 facility will cover an area equivalent to almost 500 football pitches, or more than three times the size of Al-Maryah Island in Abu Dhabi. It will produce enough polyolefins annually to make pipes to supply water to 35 million households.

  Borouge Group International

  Borouge is the petrochemicals-producing joint venture of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) and Austrian energy company Borealis. Adnoc owns the majority 56% stake in Borouge, with Borealis holding a 34% stake. The remaining 10% of shares in Borouge trade on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange following an initial public offering in June 2022, from which Adnoc Group earned proceeds of $2bn.

  In March, Adnoc and Austrian energy company OMV entered into a binding framework agreement to combine their shareholdings in Borouge and Borealis and take control of a greater share of the global chemicals market.

  Adnoc has also entered into a share purchase agreement with Canada-based Nova Chemicals Holdings, an indirectly wholly-owned company of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth institution Mubadala Investment Company, for 100% of Nova Chemicals Corporation (Nova).

  Adnoc and OMV have also agreed that upon completion of the planned merger of Borouge and Borealis, the new entity – which will be known as Borouge Group International – will acquire Nova for $13.4bn including debt, further expanding its footprint in North America.

  Borouge Group International is intended to be headquartered and domiciled in Austria, with regional headquarters in the UAE. In addition, Borouge Group International will hold corporate hubs in Canada’s Calgary, Pittsburgh in the US and Singapore.

  The combination of Borouge and Borealis, and the acquisition of Nova, are expected to complete in the first quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions, Adnoc said.

  The acquisition, together with the contribution of the upcoming Borouge 4 petrochemicals project in Abu Dhabi, will create a major polyolefins producer valued at over $60bn. It will be the world’s fourth-largest by nameplate production, with a potential of 13.6 million metric t/y across 62 plants globally.

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  Indrajit Sen
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  Bechtel confirms King Salman International airport deal

  14 May 2025

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  US firm Bechtel Corporation has confirmed that it has been appointed as the delivery partner for the terminals at King Salman International airport (KSIA) in Riyadh.

  Bechtel will manage the delivery of three new terminals, including the terminal for commercial carriers, Terminal 6 for low-cost carriers and a new private aviation terminal with hangars.

  In March, MEED exclusively reported that King Salman International Airport Development Company (KSIADC) had appointed delivery partners for Riyadh’s KSIA project.

  In addition to Bechtel, another US-based firm, Parsons, was chosen as the delivery partner for two packages. One covers the airside infrastructure, including the runways, taxiways, air traffic control towers, fuel farms and fire stations. The other involves the infrastructure connecting the airport to the rest of the city, including utilities and roads.

  Delivery partner roles typically involve assisting the project client with developing a project. This includes project management, design management, cost consulting and procurement advice. Delivery partners have been appointed for some of Saudi Arabia’s largest projects. For example, a team of Canada’s AtkinsRealis, Jacobs and Parsons, both US-based, is working as the delivery partner for The Line at Neom.

  UK-based architect Foster + Partners won the competition to design the masterplan for KSIA in 2023. Jacobs is doing the engineering work for the project.

  In May, MEED exclusively reported that KSIADC had tendered a contract to develop the first phase of Terminal 6 and the Iconic Terminal of the KSIA project in Riyadh.

  The tender notice was issued on 17 April with a submission deadline of 15 May.

  The client plans to deliver the package on an early contractor involvement (ECI) basis.

  The ECI process requires selected contractors to submit methodologies for the project and a design proposal.

  Project scale

  The project covers an area of about 57 square kilometres (sq km), allowing for six parallel runways, and will include the existing terminals at King Khalid International airport. It will also include 12 sq km of airport support facilities, residential and recreational facilities, retail outlets and other logistics real estate.

  If the project is completed on time in 2030, it will become the world’s largest operating airport in terms of passenger capacity, according to UK analytics firm GlobalData.

  The airport aims to accommodate up to 120 million passengers by 2030 and 185 million by 2050. The goal for cargo is to process 3.5 million tonnes a year by 2050.

  Saudi Arabia plans to invest $100bn in its aviation sector. Riyadh’s Saudi Aviation Strategy, announced by the General Authority of Civil Aviation (Gaca), aims to triple Saudi Arabia’s annual passenger traffic to 330 million travellers by 2030.

  It also aims to increase air cargo traffic to 4.5 million tonnes and raise the country’s total air connections to more than 250 destinations. 

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  Yasir Iqbal
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  Nemetschek launches in Saudi Arabia

  14 May 2025

  

   

  Germany-headquartered architecture, engineering, construction and operation (AEC/O) software provider Nemetschek Group has signed multiple agreements with local partners, coinciding with the opening of its office in Saudi Arabia.

  The companies that signed memorandums of understanding with Nemetschek include:

  • Nesma Infrastructure & Technology
  • BuildingSmart International
  • Concerted Solutions
  • Wakecap 

  The $14bn ($15.5bn) software firm is looking to invest in the Middle East market, particularly Saudi Arabia, as part of its regional expansion strategy, according to its chief executive, Yves Padrines.

  “Nemetschek will invest in talent, technology, know-how … and in training young people to become more productive, sustainable and capable of addressing the building lifecycle issues,” Padrines told the ongoing Saudi Gigaprojects Forum in Riyadh.

  “We will do everything in our power to help you achieve the 2030 Vision,” he said, referring to the kingdom’s long-term economic programme.

  Product suites

  Nemetschek’s product suites cover the entire build lifecycle, adding an ‘o’ for operation to the conventional AEC software technology suite.  

  “Forty-two per cent of buildings and infrastructure globally are at the end of their lifecycle,” Padrines said, highlighting the need to ensure those assets do not worsen the building environment’s contribution to carbon emissions, which sits at approximately 40% of the global total.

  Nemetschek’s AEC/O software products have around 7.5 million users globally, and the firm is keen to participate in design and execution for the multibillion-dollar-a-year construction market in the Middle East.

  Some 90% of projects globally struggle with budget and time due to silos and a lack of collaboration. “There is a need to streamline the workflow and implement interoperable solutions like Open BIM for projects to align with budget and delivery timeline,” the executive explained.

  Delays in construction projects, coupled with an estimated 20% of materials waste, can be avoided by adopting such solutions, including, where applicable, digital twins for both greenfield and existing assets, concluded Padrines.

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  Jennifer Aguinaldo