Middle East contract awards: November 2023
19 December 2023
In November, there were $13.1bn of contract awards in the Middle East and North Africa region, in an almost two-thirds reduction on the record $39bn signed the previous month, according to regional projects tracker MEED Projects. The award value total was also below average when compared to the $20bn average monthly awards over the preceding 12 months and the $15bn long-term average for monthly contract awards.
The strong overall project award activity in 2023, particularly in October, nevertheless leaves the region still potentially on track to match, if not exceed, the record value for annual contract awards set in 2014.
As in previous months, November’s contract awards tally was led by multibillion-dollar awards by regional heavyweights Saudi Arabia and the UAE, along with Qatar.
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia recorded $5.5bn of contract awards in November, the biggest of which were a pair of $1.2bn awards by Saudi Power Procurement Company for the 1.2GW Rabigh combined-cycle power plant and the 1.1GW Al-Hinakiyah solar independent power producer plant.
A $1.2bn, 1.1GW solar project at Al-Hinakiyah was awarded under round four of the kingdom’s National Renewable Energy Programme (NREP) along with the $440m, 400MW solar project at Tubarjal. The projects form part of Saudi Arabia’s plan to install 27.3GW of renewable energy capacity by 2024 and 58.7GW by 2030 through the NREP.
Saudi Arabia’s projects market is set for a further boost following the kingdom’s successful bid to host Expo 2030, with Riyadh stating that it plans to invest $7.8bn into related infrastructure. Activity on the kingdom'a gigaprojects also continues, with MEED estimating in late November that $60.6bn of deals had been inked from 2018 to date.
Qatar
Qatar saw $2.6bn of deals inked in November, with the largest a $1.2bn contract signed by North Oil Company with India’s Larsen & Toubro for the Al-Shaheen oil field development Ruya batch one project, which is part of the estimated $6bn project to increase the production potential of the field. The scope of work involves the installation of a large offshore platform and integration with existing facilities.
Download the Middle East contracts awarded for November 2023 |
UAE
The UAE recorded the third-largest value of deals signed in November, at $2.4bn. The biggest was a $1.2bn contract let by local developer Wasl to China State Construction Engineering Corporation for the MGM resort and the Bellagio and Aria hotels on The Island development in Dubai. According to MEED Projects, it is the largest construction deal to be signed in the emirate since local contractor Alec secured the $1.36bn contract to build One Zabeel from local developer Ithra in 2017.
The UAE has also seen movement on other big-ticket projects, with Dubai approving the $4.9bn Blue Line extension to the Dubai Metro network on 24 November. Dubai’s construction market is set to make a pivotal shift next year as the emirate’s focus switches from real estate to public infrastructure projects.
North Africa
In North Africa, Algeria and Morocco both contributed to the November contract awards total, with $960m and $955m of deals signed, respectively. Algeria’s value came from a single award by state-owned Anesrif for a new mining railway between Tindouf and Bechar. The project is part of multibillion-dollar rail building programme by Anesrif that involves the development of a total 12,000 kilometres of railway lines.
In Morocco, the largest contract award was an $875m signing by the National Office of Electricity & Drinking Water (Onee) with a consortium led by Spain's Acciona to deliver the first phase of a major seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant in Grand Casablanca.
Egypt recorded $148m of deals signed in November, down from $776m in October. The biggest deal was signed by the National Authority for Tunnels for the signalling system on phase three of the 10th of Ramadan light rail transit project.
Other GCC
Back in the GCC, several contracts were also signed in Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain in November, with work worth $200m, $117m and $63m being awarded, respectively.
Oman’s projects market is set for growth, with the sultanate reinitiating plans to build the long-stalled Blue City project. The design works are ongoing and are expected to be completed by mid-2024.
Iraq
Iraq rounded out the deals recorded in November, with a $139m contract for a cement plant awarded by the Northern Region Cement Company to Germany's KHD Humboldt Wedag and the Aviation Industry Corporation of China.
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Events put Saudi Arabia on the world stage
29 July 2026
Commentary
Colin Foreman
EditorThe Expo 2030 and the 2034 World Cup will not transform Saudi Arabia’s economy on their own, but the momentum they generate and the international profile they bring underline their importance.
Over the past decade, Saudi Arabia has taken great strides in changing the international perception of the kingdom. Futuristic projects and investment in football and other sports, combined with social reforms such as opening cinemas and allowing women to drive, have helped foster a new image for the country.
This year, those efforts have been dented as the rest of the world once again sees a region blighted by conflict. Saudi Arabia will need to correct the course of public perception once the conflict draws to a close, and Expo 2030 Riyadh and the 2034 Fifa World Cup are well timed to help the kingdom maintain its modernisation drive.
Both are truly global events that will attract millions of visitors. More than 40 million visits are anticipated at the Expo, and the World Cup final in Qatar in 2022 was watched by some 1.5 billion people.
Both are truly global events that will attract millions of visitors
Locally, the impact has already begun. Flying into Riyadh’s King Khalid International airport from the south, one can clearly see earthworks and infrastructure progressing at the Expo site. To the east of the city, construction work on King Fahd Sports City Stadium is well advanced.
Expo Riyadh 2030 Company expects the construction phase and legacy development to contribute around $64bn to Saudi GDP and generate some 171,000 jobs. Fifteen stadiums are planned across five cities.
Construction activity is ramping up. Tendering is starting for the first buildings at the Expo site, including the KSA Pavilion. Meanwhile, work is beginning on more stadiums and other related infrastructure projects that will support the World Cup.
In the build-up to Expo 2030 and World Cup 2034, construction will be the main event.
READ THE AUGUST 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDFSaudi Arabia builds for the global stage; Rising uncertainty creates fresh set of challenges in the Maghreb; Gulf banks remain robust in the face of geopolitical tensions.
Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the August 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
> WORLD CUP: What the 2026 World Cup means for Saudi Arabia 2034> MARKET FOCUS: Maghreb fortunes diverge> INDUSTRY REPORT: GCC banks prove resilient amid turmoil> LEADERSHIP: Private capital and the GCC infrastructure inflection> INTERVIEW: Developers look beyond standalone solarTo see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click herehttps://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/17794600/main.gif -
Read the August 2026 MEED Business Review
29 July 2026
Download / Subscribe / 14-day trial access Saudi Arabia’s biggest event and infrastructure programmes are moving into a new phase of delivery.
Construction activity at the Expo 2030 Riyadh site is accelerating, with some of the largest packages set to be awarded before the end of this year. Infrastructure works are gathering pace and preparations are intensifying for an event that is expected to reshape the capital long after its six-month run comes to an end.At the same time, the lessons emerging from this summer’s expanded Fifa World Cup provide an early guide to the opportunities – and challenges – Saudi Arabia will face as it prepares to host football’s biggest tournament in 2034.
August’s Market Focus turns to the Maghreb, where four economies are following increasingly divergent paths. While Morocco is benefiting from World Cup-driven investment and a booming tourism sector, Algeria is deploying record public spending, Tunisia is pressing ahead with strategic power investments despite fiscal constraints, and Libya is seeing sustained interest from oil and gas investors undeterred by ongoing political disputes. The report examines what is driving this divergence and where the region’s strongest opportunities now lie.
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Bahrain tenders Tashan sewer scheme
29 July 2026
Bahrain’s Ministry of Works (MoW) has issued a tender for the construction of a sewer network in Tashan, on the outskirts of Manama.
Contractors have until 20 September to submit bids.
The scheme covers blocks 405, 419 and 421, administrative areas covering Tashan and surrounding communities. It will expand the local wastewater collection network and provide connections for existing and planned properties.
The scope includes about 2 kilometres of 150mm-diameter lateral sewers and 4.8km of main sewer lines ranging from 200mm to 400mm in diameter.
The contract also covers house connections and future connections for planned properties.
A pressure station with a capacity of 75 litres a second will be built as part of the scheme. It will be supported by about 834 metres of 250mm-diameter rising main and a discharge chamber.
Other works include the construction of manholes and associated infrastructure, as well as the decommissioning of an existing lift station.
The project is part of Bahrain’s wider programme to develop and expand its sewerage networks and treatment infrastructure.
In June, MoW issued a tender for another sewer network project in A’ali, southwest of Manama, covering Block 730 and part of Block 740.
The scheme will connect 232 plots to the public sewer network. It includes 5.2km of sewer mains with diameters ranging from 200mm to 300mm and about 3.4km of 150mm-diameter lateral sewer lines.
The scope also includes house connections, new manholes and connections to the existing sewer network.
The bid submission deadline for the A’ali project is 5 August.
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Chinese firm signs $3.3bn Kuwait wastewater deal
29 July 2026
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China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) has confirmed it has signed a contract to build Kuwait’s largest wastewater treatment plant.
The North Kabd wastewater treatment plant and related works contract was signed on 26 July between senior officials from CSCEC and Kuwait’s Ministry of Public Works (MPW).
The plant has a planned capacity of up to 1 million cubic metres a day (cm/d).
In January, MEED reported that the Chinese firm had been appointed as the main contractor for the project pending the contract’s official signing.
According to official government records at the time, the Central Agency for Public Tenders (Capt) had authorised MPW to proceed with a direct contract valued at KD999.85m ($3.3bn).
The contract covers the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the facility over a 10-year period.
Earlier, in September 2025, MEED reported that a Chinese firm was expected to sign the contract as part of a series of Kuwait-China agreements covering infrastructure and energy.
This included a $4bn agreement signed in December with China Communications Construction Company for the Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port project.
The MPW invited bids for the expansion of the Kabd facility in 2022.
Plans for the North Kabd sewage treatment plant (STP) were first announced in 2013, according to regional project tracker MEED Projects.
The initial plan included two STP units with a total combined capacity of close to 500,000 cm/d, in addition to an upgrade to an existing plant.
Kuwait has been investing significantly in wastewater infrastructure to address challenges in reusing treated sewage.
In February, Saudi Arabia’s Acwa and local financial institution Gulf Investment Corporation signed a contract with Kuwait’s Ministry of Electricity & Water, confirming the long-term offtake arrangements for the Al-Zour North independent water and power plant (IWPP) phases two and three.
The integrated facility will have a net power generation capacity of at least 2,700MW and a net desalinated water capacity of at least 545,520 cm/d, making it the largest IWPP ever undertaken in the country.
The Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects and the Ministry of Electricity & Water are also tendering phase one of the Al-Khiran IWPP.
The estimated $200m project includes an 1,800MW power plant and a desalination facility with a capacity of 568,000 cm/d.
Bids were submitted for the project in June.
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Abu Dhabi tenders urban development consultancy deal
29 July 2026
Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) has issued a tender inviting consultants to bid for an integrated consultancy services contract for upcoming works in the capital.
The scope includes the provision of integrated consultancy services across two streams – project management consultancy and secondment – covering stormwater, parks, roads and bridges programmes in Zayed City and Mohammed Bin Zayed City.
The contract duration is two years. Consultants have until 3 August to submit their proposals.
The project is one of a series of major infrastructure schemes being overseen by DMT in Abu Dhabi.
Earlier this month, DMT announced the E20 highway expansion project.
The scheme covers widening the main carriageway from three to five lanes, constructing more than 10 kilometres (km) of new ramps and loops, and building four bridges.
Works also include 1.5km of internal roads and the addition of eight signalised junctions across Khalifa City and the Zayed International airport precinct.
The project includes utility works, comprising 62km of stormwater drainage, 37km of irrigation networks and the installation of 485 streetlights.
Separately, DMT is evaluating bids for a design-and-build contract to construct two bridges serving Hudayriyat Island in Abu Dhabi.
The scope includes a two-lane bridge connecting 32nd Street to Shakhbout Bin Sultan Street, and a single-lane bridge on 8th Street. It also includes upgrades to signalised intersections.
Shakhbout Bin Sultan Street is a two-way road with three lanes in each direction, providing access to and from Hudayriyat Island.
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