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
  • WEBINAR: UAE Projects Market 2026

    15 April 2026

    Webinar: UAE Projects Market 2026
    Tuesday, 28 April 2026 | 11:00 GST  |  Register now

    Agenda:

    • Overview of the UAE projects market landscape
    • 2025 projects market performance
    • Value of work awarded 2026 YTD
    • Impact of the Iran conflict on the projects market and real estate, assessing supply chain disruptions, material cost inflation and war risk premiums
    • Key drivers, challenges and opportunities
    • Size of future pipeline by sector and status
    • Ranking of the top contractors and clients
    • Summary of key current and future projects
    • Short and long-term market outlook
    • Audience Q&A

    Hosted by: Colin Foreman, editor of MEED 

    Colin Foreman is editor and a specialist construction journalist for news and analysis on MEED.com and the MEED Business Review magazine. He has been reporting on the region since 2003, specialising in the construction sector and its impact on the broader economy. He has reported exclusively on a wide range of projects across the region including Dubai Metro, the Burj Khalifa, Jeddah Airport, Doha Metro, Hamad International airport and Yas Island. Before joining MEED, Colin reported on the construction sector in Hong Kong.

    Click here to register

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16401868/main.gif
    Colin Foreman
  • Saudi Landbridge finds its moment in Gulf turmoil

    15 April 2026

    Commentary
    Yasir Iqbal
    Construction writer

    The strategic case for the Saudi Landbridge has never been more urgent. SAR’s appointment of Spain’s Typsa as lead design consultant, reported by MEED this week, is more than a procurement milestone. After two decades of delays, it reflects how the long-deferred project has become a strategic necessity.

    The conflict reshaping the Middle East has made that necessity more immediate. Red Sea transits are costly and unpredictable. The Strait of Hormuz carries risk no insurer can fully price. Saudi Arabia’s most valuable exports, including crude oil, refined products, petrochemicals and industrial goods, move almost entirely by sea through routes that are no longer reliably secure.

    The kingdom sits between two coastlines with no rail link connecting them. That gap is now an economic exposure.

    The $27bn project addresses it directly. More than 1,500 kilometres of track, anchored by a 900km railway between Riyadh and Jeddah, will provide direct freight access from King Abdullah Port on the Red Sea, with upgrades to the Riyadh-Dammam line and a new connection to Yanbu.

    Together, they create what Saudi Arabia has never had: a continuous land corridor linking Gulf industrial ports to Red Sea export terminals, entirely within its own borders.

    The commercial implications are substantial. Aramco’s downstream output, Sabic’s chemicals, and the manufacturing clusters of Jubail and Yanbu gain flexible access to both coasts.

    Exporters targeting Europe and the Americas load at Jeddah; those serving Asia pivot east to Dammam by rail, on demand, without Hormuz risk or Red Sea freight surcharges.

    No neighbouring economy has that optionality. The network also underpins a broader economic ambition. Connecting Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, Jubail, Yanbu, King Abdullah port and King Khalid airport by rail positions the kingdom as a genuine logistics corridor between East and West. 

    With design now under way and construction tenders expected imminently, the Landbridge is closer to reality than at any point in its troubled history. Regional disruption did not create this project. But it has made the argument for it unanswerable.

    MEED’s April 2026 report on Saudi Arabia includes:

    > COMMENT: Risk accelerates Saudi spending shift
    > GVT &: ECONOMY: Riyadh navigates a changed landscape
    > BANKING: Testing times for Saudi banks
    > UPSTREAM: Offshore oil and gas projects to dominate Aramco capex in 2026
    > DOWNSTREAM: Saudi downstream projects market enters lean period
    > POWER: Wind power gathers pace in Saudi Arabia
    > WATER: Sharakat plan signals next phase of Saudi water expansion
    > CONSTRUCTION: Saudi construction enters a period of strategic readjustment
    > TRANSPORT: Rail expansion powers Saudi Arabia’s infrastructure push

    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16401567/main.png
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Kuwait awards $565m upstream oil contract

    15 April 2026

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Kuwait’s Heavy Engineering Industries & Shipbuilding Company (Heisco) has been awarded a contract for flowlines and associated works in North Kuwait by the state-owned upstream operator Kuwait Oil Company (KOC).

    In a statement to Kuwait’s stock exchange, Heisco said it had received a formal contract award letter for the project, valued at KD174.2m ($565m).

    The contract was awarded under Tender No. RFP-2141028 and was approved by Kuwait’s Central Agency for Public Tenders.

    Heisco was the fourth-lowest bidder for the contract.

    In its stock market statement, Heisco said that the financial impact of the contract will be determined at a later stage, with further updates to be provided as the project progresses.

    Heisco has also signed a renewal agreement with a local bank for a KD50m ($165m) loan.

    The company said in a disclosure statement that the loan is intended to finance Heisco’s activities in Kuwait and other countries.

    “Our company has renewed the credit facilities agreement with one of the local banks to finance its activities,” it said.

    Earlier this month, Heisco submitted the lowest bid for a project to upgrade part of the Mina Abdullah refinery’s export infrastructure.

    It submitted a bid of KD11,919,652 ($38.6m) for the project to implement renovation works on the artificial island that forms part of the port at the refinery.

    The only other bidder was Kuwait’s International Marine Construction Company (IMCC), which submitted a bid of KD12,480,113 ($40.4m).

    Kuwait is currently seeing significant disruption to its oil and gas sector due to fallout from the US and Israel’s war with Iran.

    The Mina Abdullah refinery was integrated with the Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery as part of the $16bn Clean Fuels Project, which came online in 2021.

    Several units at the Mina Al-Ahmadi Refinery were shut down after the refinery was hit by drone attacks last month.

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

    Economic shock threatens long-term outlook; Riyadh adjusts to fiscal and geopolitical risk; GCC contractor ranking reflects gigaprojects slowdown.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the April 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > GCC CONTRACTOR RANKING: Construction guard undergoes a shift
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16394808/main.png
    Wil Crisp
  • Sirte oil projects expected to progress in Libya

    15 April 2026

     

    Three oil projects located in Libya’s Sirte basin are expected to be prioritised in the wake of Libya’s recent budget deal, according to industry sources.

    The projects are being developed by Libya’s Waha Oil Company, a subsidiary of the state-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC).

    All three projects will develop Libyan reservoirs that have not yet been tapped.

    The projects are known as:

    • NC98
    • Gialo 3
    • 6J North Gialo

    Together, the projects are expected to double Waha’s production from around 300,000 barrels of oil a day (b/d) to 600,000 b/d.

    The Waha concession covers 13 million acres.

    The stakeholders in Libya’s Waha concessions include France’s TotalEnergies, which has a 20.41% stake, and US-based ConocoPhillips.

    In March, MEED revealed that South Korea’s Daewoo had pulled out of the tender process for Libya’s 6J North Gialo oil field development project.

    Daewoo had formed a partnership with Egypt’s Petrojet to participate in the tender process.

    The only other company to submit a bid for the project was UK-based Petrofac, which filed for administration in October last year.

    In September last year, MEED reported that two bids had been submitted for the project and were under evaluation.

    The 6J North Gialo project was the first to be tendered; it was expected to be followed by NC98, with the Gialo 3 project likely to be tendered last.

    The NC98 field is located in the southeast area of Libya’s Sirte basin. Waha Oil Company ran a technical workshop for the NC98 project in June 2023.

    The workshop included a presentation of a study conducted by TotalEnergies that considered different development options for injecting gas and water, as well as exporting gas.

    At the time, Waha Oil said that the project to develop NC98 was one of its “major strategic projects” and by implementing it, it hoped to raise production by an average of 60,000 b/d.

    The Gialo 3 project scope includes installing surface facilities to channel output to a new production unit. Three existing production units will also be upgraded as part of the project.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16394706/main.png
    Wil Crisp
  • EtihadWE tenders feasibility study for UAE-India power link

    14 April 2026

     

    Etihad Water & Electricity (EtihadWE) has tendered a contract for a techno-economic feasibility study of a proposed UAE-India undersea power interconnector.

    The study aims to assess the long-term technical, economic and market viability of a power exchange between the UAE and India.

    The deadline for interested firms to purchase tender documents is 23 April.

    The proposed scheme would be the UAE’s first direct subsea cross-border electricity interconnector and the first direct power link between the UAE and India.

    In January, MEED exclusively reported that the utility was seeking consultants to register their interest in participating in the tender process.

    It is understood that firms may bid as single entities or as part of a consortium.

    According to the utility, the scope of work includes developing feasible interconnection options and defining design parameters and capacity.

    It will cover preliminary and survey-supported routing for the subsea cables and the identification of landing points and onshore transmission links.

    The study will also provide refined cost estimates, supply-chain and execution timelines, legal and regulatory reviews, commercial frameworks, risk identification, and support for the preparation of draft tender documents and technical specifications.

    In addition, it will outline bankable financing, ownership and operational structures as well as an implementation and operations schedule.

    Furthermore, the consultant will be required to assess the project’s impact on the grid and optimise interconnector capacity through sensitivity studies.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16385529/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall