meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Saudi Arabia launches 200 PPP projects

6 April 2023

Saudi Arabia has announced a Privatisation & PPP (P&PPP) pipeline that includes 200 projects across 17 sectors.

This new P&PPP pipeline aims to attract local and international investors and ensure their readiness to participate in the schemes tendered to the market.

The initiative comes as the kingdom strives to increase the attractiveness of its economy and raise the private sector's contribution to GDP.

Minister of Finance and chairman of the Board of the National Centre for Privatisation & PPP (NCP), Mohammed al-Jadaan, said the list of projects aligns with the aims of Vision 2030, reinforces the strength of public-private partnerships (PPPs) and will contribute to attracting new international investments.

The pipeline of projects for each sector will be available for investors through the NCP portal.

Information about the first 140 projects has already been published, and more projects are expected soon.

Four PPP airports projects

In line with Saudi Arabia's aviation strategy to increase the country’s annual passenger handling capacity to 330 million by 2030, the kingdom has announced plans to tender four airports under the P&PPP pipeline: Abha International airport, Taif International airport, Hail International airport and Prince Naif International airport in Al-Qassim.

The Ministry of Transport & Logistics Services will procure the schemes.

The launch dates for the PPP tenders were not specified. However, MEED reported in July 2022 that through NCP, Saudi Arabia’s Matarat Holding Company was expected to start the procurement process to develop airport PPP projects in 2023.

In the initial plan, the Abha and Taif airport PPPs were scheduled to be tendered in the first half of 2023, while the Hail and Qassim airport projects were to be potentially tendered in the second half of 2023.

The P&PPP pipeline list includes:

Abha International airport

The existing Abha International airport is operating above capacity with 4.4 million passengers annually against the originally designed capacity of 1.5 million. The targeted capacity for the new airport is 8.5 million passengers a year by 2030 and 13 million passengers by 2053. The contract type is the build-transfer-operate (BTO) model and the project duration is 30 years.

Taif International airport

The capacity of the current Taif International airport is 600,000 passengers. The targeted capacity of the new airport is 4 million passengers by 2030 and 7.4 million passengers by 2053. The project will be developed under the design-build-finance-operate-maintain (DBFOM) concession; its duration is 30 years.

Hail International airport

This project aims to develop the airport and service facilities following the standards approved by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). The targeted airport capacity increase is 3 million passengers a year. The contract type, duration and launch details are not specified.

Prince Naif International airport in Al-Qassim

The scheme involves developing the airport in Al-Qassim in line with ICAO standards and increasing its capacity to 5.3 million passengers annually. The contract type, duration and launch details are not specified.

The Taif, Hail and Al-Qassim airport schemes were previously tendered and awarded as PPP projects using a BTO model.

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (Gaca) awarded the contracts to develop four airport PPP projects to two consortiums in 2017. A team of Tukey’s TAV Airports and the local Al-Rajhi Holding Group won the 30-year concession agreement to build, transfer and operate airport passenger terminals in Yanbu, Qassim and Hail.

A second team, comprising Lebanon’s Consolidated Contractors Company, Germany’s Munich Airport International and local firm Asyad Group, won the BTO contract to develop Taif International airport.

These projects then stalled following the restructuring of the kingdom’s aviation sector.

Saudi Arabia has already privatised airports including the $1.2bn Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz International airport in Medina, which was developed as a PPP and opened in 2015.

Four PPP highways schemes

The kingdom has also announced plans to tender four highway schemes under the P&PPP pipeline. The following schemes will be procured by the Ministry of Transport & Logistic Services:

  • The 136-kilometre Asir-Jizan highway will include six intersections, 18km of bridges and a 9km-long tunnel network. The project starts at Al-Farah in Asir and extends to the Red Sea through Jizan. The contract type is DFBOM, and the project duration is 30 years. The launch date is not specified.

     
  • The 570km Jeddah-Jizan highway will comprise 43 intersections, 11 wildlife crossings and 29 bridges. The project scope includes converting the current 280km of double lanes into three lanes. The contract model is not specified; the project duration is 30 years.

     
  • The 447km Yanbu-Jubail highway will contain 17 intersections, 14 wildlife crossings, four bridges, one tunnel and 18 service areas. Construction work on a 39km section towards the Al-Zulfi area has been completed. The contract model, duration and launch date are not specified.

     
  • The Jeddah-Makkah road spans a length of 64km. It consists of seven interchanges and four camel crossings. The construction is under way for 51km of the road and is being carried out in three phases. The construction works for phase four are yet to begin. The construction cost for phase four of the road will be funded by the government, similar to the ongoing construction works for phases one to three. The proposed scope of work is for the operation and maintenance of the Jeddah-Makkah road, and developing and operating motorway service areas. The contract's duration and the tender's launch date are not specified.
Other planned PPP projects

Saudi Arabia has also announced plans to tender seven PPP desalination projects.

The independent water projects (IWPs) represent an aggregate desalination capacity of 2.8 million cubic metres a day (cm/d). Owned by the Ministry of Environment, Water & Agriculture, the IWPs will be procured under 25-year build-own-operate (BOO) contracts.

The first project, Ras al-Khair 2 with a capacity of 600,000 cm/d, will be launched in February 2024.

This will be followed by the launch of another IWP, the 400,000 cm/d Ras al-Khair 3, in April 2024.

In March 2025, the kingdom plans to launch the Tabuk IWP with a capacity of 400,000 cm/d. The Alshuqaiq 4 IWP is set for launch in July 2025, with a capacity of 400,000 cm/d.

These schemes will be followed by the Rabigh 5 IWP, with a capacity of 400,000 cm/d, to be launched in April 2027, and the Rayis 2 IWP, with a capacity of 300,000 cm/d, set for launch in July 2035.

Finally, the Jizan IWP is set to have a capacity of 300,000 cm/d. Its launch date is not yet disclosed.

In addition, the kingdom plans to tender six wastewater treatment projects starting in 2024. The five independent sewage treatment plants (ISTPs), one small sewage treatment plant (SSTP) and collection network will treat wastewater for reuse in non-agricultural municipal and industrial applications.

The five ISTPs represent an aggregate wastewater treatment capacity of 650,000 cm/d.

The Ministry of Environment, Water & Agriculture will procure the projects under build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) models.

Other projects to be tendered under the P&PPP pipeline include several medical centres, health centres, hospitals, educational buildings, schools, colleges, universities, strategic water reservoirs, marine services schemes, land ports and power stations.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/10739699/main.jpg
Eva Levesque

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

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Aramco nears contract award for Jafurah fifth expansion phase

    6 October 2026

     

    Saudi Aramco is believed to be close to awarding the main contract for a major project representing the fifth expansion phase of the Jafurah unconventional gas development programme in Saudi Arabia.

    The main scope of work for the fifth expansion phase of Jafurah involves the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of three gas compression plants at the gas basin in the kingdom’s Eastern Province. Each plant will be capable of processing up to 200 million cubic feet a day (cf/d).

    Indian contractor Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (L&TEH) is the favourite to win the main EPC contract, according to sources.

    “Negotiations between Aramco and L&T have reached an advanced stage and the [Indian] contractor is now in pole position to clinch the deal,” one source told MEED.

    MEED previously reported that China Petroleum Engineering & Construction Company (CPECC) was in a favourable position to secure the main EPC contract for the Jafurah fifth expansion phase, based on Aramco’s initial evaluation of proposals. The situation remained subject to change as Aramco negotiated with the project’s other bidders, MEED reported in August.

    Aramco set 19 July as the final deadline for proposals, and contractors submitted their bids by that date, MEED previously reported.

    ALSO READ: Aramco receives interest for major gas processing plant

    The Saudi energy giant is understood to have issued the main EPC tender for the project in the first quarter of this year.

    Aramco issued a solicitation of interest for the Jafurah fifth expansion phase in mid-November, with contractors submitting responses by 30 November, MEED previously reported.

    UK-headquartered Wood Group has carried out the front-end engineering and design for the project.

    The Jafurah basin is the largest liquid-rich shale gas play in the Middle East, spanning about 17,000 square kilometres. The reserve is estimated to contain 229 trillion cubic feet of gas and 75 billion stock-tank barrels of condensate.

    Aramco recently brought the greenfield Jafurah gas processing plant online, with a production capacity of 450 million cf/d, marking the commissioning of the first phase of its $100bn capital expenditure programme to produce gas from the unconventional resource base.

    The company previously stated that it expected to start gas production at Jafurah in 2025, with the intention of progressively ramping up to 2 billion cf/d of sales gas, 420 million cf/d of ethane and 630,000 barrels a day (b/d) of high-value liquids by 2030.

    Aramco has said that its unconventional gas programme, at peak production, is expected to generate electricity equivalent to displacing 500,000 b/d of oil.

    Jafurah gas development phases

    Alongside nearing an EPC contract award decision for the fifth expansion phase at Jafurah, MEED also recently reported that Aramco had completed the solicitation of interest process with contractors for the unconventional gas programme’s sixth phase.

    The main scope of work on the Jafurah sixth expansion phase is similar to the fifth phase, and involves the EPC of three gas compression plants at the giant gas reserve, each with an output capacity of 200 million cf/d.

    Aramco also kicked off EPC works on the Jafurah fourth expansion phase in the second quarter of the year.

    MEED reported in April that Aramco had selected Mumbai-headquartered L&TEH as the main contractor for the fourth phase, which sources estimate could be valued at about $1.5bn.

    The main scope of work on Jafurah’s fourth expansion phase involves the EPC of two gas compression trains at the gas basin. Each plant will be able to process up to 200 million cf/d.

    EPC work on the third phase of the Jafurah unconventional gas development programme is also advancing.

    In July 2024, Aramco issued a non-binding letter of intent to a consortium of Tecnicas Reunidas and Sinopec Group for the EPC contract for phase three. The contract is estimated at $2.24bn.

    The objective of the third expansion phase is similar to that of the fourth phase. The main scope of work involves the EPC of three gas compression plants, each with a capacity of 200 million cf/d.

    The third phase’s scope of work also includes building a 230kV substation to power the new gas compression plants, and installing other utilities units, piping systems and safety equipment.

    The selection of contractors for the third expansion phase came within weeks of Aramco officially awarding EPC contracts for the second phase, which aims to raise the field’s processing potential to up to 2 billion cf/d of raw gas.

    Aramco awarded 16 contracts, worth a combined total of about $12.4bn, for the second expansion phase on 30 June 2024.

    The EPC scope of work for that project involves the construction of gas compression facilities and associated pipelines, and the expansion of the Jafurah gas plant, including the construction of gas processing trains, utilities, sulphur and export facilities, Aramco said in a statement.

    The main EPC packages of the Jafurah second expansion phase project, their estimated values and the selected contractors are:

    • Package 1 – gas processing plant and main process units – $2.9bn: Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India)
    • Package 2 – utilities and offsites – $2.4bn: Hyundai Engineering (South Korea)
    • Package 3 – gas compression units – $1bn: Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon
    • Riyas natural gas liquids (NGL) package 1 – NGL fractionation trains – $1bn: Tecnicas Reunidas / Refining & Chemical Engineering Group (part of China’s Sinopec Group)
    • Riyas NGL package 2 – utilities, storage and export facilities – $2.2bn: Tecnicas Reunidas/Refining & Chemical Engineering Group
    • Riyas NGL package 6 – site preparation works – $107m: Mofarreh Alharbi & Partners (Saudi Arabia)
    • Riyas NGL package 9 – temporary construction facilities – $80m: Mofarreh Alharbi & Partners

    Aramco kickstarted EPC works on the first phase of the programme in November 2021 by awarding $10bn-worth of subsurface and EPC contracts.

    In February 2020, Aramco received a capital expenditure grant of $110bn from the Saudi government for the long-term phased development of the Jafurah unconventional gas resource base.

    The Jafurah programme is central to Aramco’s goal of increasing gas production capacity. The target has recently been raised to 80%, with 2021 as the baseline, up from 60%, to meet rising domestic and global demand. The company expects life-cycle investment in Jafurah to exceed $100bn.

    Aramco completed an $11bn lease-and-leaseback deal in late October 2025 for gas processing facilities at the Jafurah unconventional gas reserve with a consortium led by funds managed by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), part of US asset manager BlackRock.

    Under the transaction, a newly formed subsidiary, Jafurah Midstream Gas Company (JMGC), will lease development and usage rights to the Jafurah field gas processing plant and the Riyas natural gas liquids fractionation facility.

    After 20 years, JMGC will lease the assets back to Aramco. JMGC will collect a tariff payable by Aramco in exchange for granting Aramco the exclusive right to receive, process and treat raw gas from the Jafurah resource base.

    Aramco will hold a 51% majority stake in JMGC, while the GIP-led consortium will hold the remaining 49%. Investors participating in the GIP-led consortium include Hassana Investment Company, the Arab Energy Fund and Aberdeen Investcorp Infrastructure Partners, as well as other institutional investors from North and Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20299556/main3638.jpg
    Indrajit Sen
  • Joint venture wins Riyadh data centre construction deal

    6 October 2026

     

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Egyptian contractor Hassan Allam Construction and India’s Sterling & Wilson have won an estimated SR750m ($200m) contract to build the first phase of a data centre project in Riyadh.

    The first phase will have an IT load capacity of 16.2MW, with overall capacity reaching 50MW in the second phase.

    The scope includes civil, architectural, and mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) works, infrastructure works and other associated works.

    Upon completion of both phases, the facility will comprise one 5MW standard-density hall and four high-density halls, each rated at 11.2MW.

    Saudi Arabian artificial intelligence (AI) firm Humain and Center3 – the digital infrastructure subsidiary of local telecom company STC Group – are jointly developing the project.

    The first phase is scheduled to take 16 months.

    In December last year, Center3 and Humain partnered to develop and operate AI-focused data centres across Saudi Arabia, with a planned capacity of up to 1GW.

    The partners said the first phase will deliver up to 250MW of capacity, designed for high-density AI workloads and large-scale model training.

    The venture combines Center3’s data centre operations and regional connectivity with Humain’s full-stack AI capabilities, with the latter responsible for aligning facility design with advanced compute requirements and future architectures.

    The companies said the programme will deliver purpose-built facilities engineered for high power density, low latency and resilient operations, to support large language models and other mission-critical AI applications.

    They added that the initial schemes will serve as a template for subsequent rollouts as capacity scales towards the 1GW target.

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

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20298893/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Chevron signs Egypt oil and gas exploration deal

    6 October 2026

    State-owned Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (Egas) and US-headquartered Chevron have signed an agreement related to oil and gas exploration in Egypt’s offshore Lotus concession.

    Under the agreement, Chevron will invest at least $88m in exploration activities within the concession, according to a statement from Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum & Mineral Resources.

    Chevron has agreed to drill two deepwater exploration wells and to reprocess 3D seismic data for the concession.

    Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum & Mineral Resources said the agreement was part of the ministry’s “efforts to expand exploration activities and unlock new areas for petroleum investments”.

    It also said that the deal reflected Chevron’s “commitment to pumping new investments into exploration activities in Egypt”.

    In August, Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Karim Badawi, presented the ministry’s five-year production strategy, which aims to double Egypt’s oil and condensate output while strengthening the country’s position as a regional hub for petroleum product trading and gas liquefaction.

    Egypt has been working towards this goal by forging a range of new deals with international oil companies.

    Chevron has offshore exploration and development rights for several Egyptian concessions, including Nargis, North El-Dabaa, North West Atoll, North Simian and North Cleopatra, where it partners with Shell.

    In April, Egypt’s cabinet approved a draft version of the Lotus concession agreement between Egas and Chevron during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.

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

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20298172/main.jpeg
    Wil Crisp
  • Contractors prepare bids for eight Libyan oil and gas tenders

    6 October 2026

     

    Contractors are preparing bids for eight tenders issued by Arabian Gulf Oil Company (Agoco), a wholly owned subsidiary of Libya’s state-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC), which operates several fields including Sarir, Messla and Nafoura.

    Tender 1 is for the supply and installation of a crude oil sedimentation tank at a site known as Complex 2 in the Sarir field. The scope also includes installation of associated utilities and a gas extractor.

    Tender 2 is for an electrical interconnection project to supply the Sinawon field, located in the Nalut region of western Libya. The scope includes infrastructure to connect the field to the General Electricity Company of Libya (Gecol) grid.

    Tender 3 covers mechanical tie-ins to connect four wells at the Nafoura field to existing infrastructure: G-322, G-332, K-10 and K-11.

    The bid deadline for the first three tenders is 12.30pm local time on 8 November 2026.

    Tender 4 is also for four mechanical well tie-ins at the Nafoura field: G-315/51, K-12/51, K-13/51 and Y-651.

    Tender 5 is for connecting four wells to the electrical grid at the Nafoura field: G-315HR/51, K-12/51, K-13/51 and Y-6/51.

    Tender 6 is for flowline well tie-ins at the Messla and Majid fields. Flowlines from wells VV-7/65 and VV-6/65 at Messla will be tied in, along with the flowline from well Z-8HR/80 at Majid.

    Tender 7 covers connecting five wells to the electrical grid at the Messla and Majid fields: VV-6/65, VV-7/65, Z-8HR, Z-6HR and A-03.

    The bid deadline for the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth tenders is 12.30pm local time on 25 October 2026.

    Increasing interest

    International oil companies are showing increased interest in oil and gas assets in North Africa as the Strait of Hormuz crisis continues to erode the appeal of investing in some of the Middle East’s biggest oil and gas producers.

    Over recent months, the chief executive of the Italian oil company Eni, Claudio Descalzi, said the company plans to drill 230 new oil and gas wells in Egypt in an effort to increase production in the country.

    The US oil and gas company Chevron also signed a production sharing agreement with Libya’s National Oil Corporation for onshore Block S4, which covers an area in the Sirte Basin.

    In addition, companies that have been engaging in recent talks focused on expanding their presence in North Africa include France’s TotalEnergies and US-based ConocoPhillips, as well as London-headquartered Shell and BP.

    The uptick in interest in North African oil and gas assets comes amid continued disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key export route for some of the Middle East’s biggest oil and gas exporters.

    Flows through the Strait have been disrupted by a regional war that was triggered by US and Israeli attacks on Iran on 28 February.

    Countries negatively impacted by the disruption include Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.

    Amid the ongoing disruption to oil and gas exports from these countries, some North African officials have promoted their oil and gas sectors as reliable alternative suppliers.

    In August, Libya’s Oil and Gas Minister Khalifa Abdel Sadig told a conference in Norway that Libya could be a “key player in providing energy security solutions” to the European Union.

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

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20298072/main.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Diriyah awards $729m hotels contracts

    6 October 2026

    Saudi gigaproject developer Diriyah Company has awarded two contracts worth more than SR2.7bn ($729m) for work on five hotels and three residential assets in Diriyah Square.

    The first contract, worth $375m, was awarded to UCC Saudi, the local branch of Qatar’s UCC Holding, as MEED reported exclusively in June.

    The scope includes Package 4 at Diriyah Square, covering mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) and finishing works for assets with a built-up area of about 110,000 square metres.

    These include:

    • Fauchon Hotel (85 keys)
    • Armani Hotel (69 keys)
    • Branded Residences (15 units)
    • Orient Express Hotel (86 keys)

    The second contract, worth $353m, was awarded to a joint venture of local Almajal Alarabi (Mag) and Man Enterprise Al-Saudia, a subsidiary of Lebanon’s Man Enterprise.

    The scope of work covers façade works, blockwork, fit-out, MEP and external works for three hotels and two residential buildings at Diriyah Square.

    The Diriyah masterplan envisages the city as a cultural and lifestyle tourism destination. Located northwest of Riyadh’s city centre, it will cover 14 square kilometres and combine 300 years of history, culture and heritage with hospitality facilities.

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

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20297961/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal