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• 
  Aldar acquires land for upcoming developments in Abu Dhabi

  3 February 2026

  Abu Dhabi-based real estate developer Aldar Properties has announced the acquisition of several land plots for upcoming developments in Abu Dhabi.

  Aldar said that the plots total over 2.3 million square metres (sq m) across Saadiyat Island and Yas Island.

  The developer expects to deliver more than 3,000 new residential units on these sites.

  On Saadiyat Island, Aldar will build villas and mansions; on Yas Island, it will develop masterplanned communities.

  The projects are expected to be formally launched later this year.

  This development follows Aldar’s announcement in October last year of a series of major projects across the residential, commercial and logistics sectors in Abu Dhabi, with a combined gross development value of AED3.8bn ($1bn).

  Aldar has committed to a new residential community in the Alreeman area of Al-Shamkha, to offer over 2,000 rental units.

  On Yas Island, it will deliver 665 residential units to the rental market, including a gated community totalling 217 units.

  Additionally, Aldar will develop 448 new apartments on Yas Island as an extension of Yas Residential Village.

  On the commercial front, the company will focus on developing office spaces in key business districts across the UAE to meet demand for Grade-A office space.

  Aldar will also deliver the UAE’s first Tesla Experience Centre on Yas Island. The facility, spanning more than 5,000 sq m, will include a showroom, service centre, and delivery and operations hall. It is scheduled for completion in 2027.

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  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Morocco awards $482m phosphate mine works contract

  3 February 2026

  Morocco’s Office Cherifien des Phosphates (OCP) has awarded China-based Dalian Heavy Industry Equipment Group a contract to provide phosphate mining services.

  The contract, valued at CNY3bn ($482m), is the largest order won by Dalian Heavy Industry Equipment to date, as well as its first engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) deal overseas.

  The scope of work includes civil engineering and the supply of core equipment such as stacker-reclaimers, crushers and belt conveyors, as well as integrated services covering the entire process of phosphate mining, beneficiation and material transportation.

  Dalian Heavy Industry Equipment has begun work on its contract, which it announced it had won in late January.

  Morocco holds the world’s largest phosphate rock reserves, which are used to produce fertilisers and battery materials.

  Major phosphate rock deposits are concentrated in the central region around Khouribga, as well as about 120 kilometres south of Casablanca in the Chaouia area.

  There are also reserves in the southern Oued Eddahab-Lagouira region near Boucraa and the central-western region around Youssoufia, roughly 80km southeast of El-Jadida in the Doukkala-Abda area.

  Prior to the contract award to Dalian Heavy Industry Equipment, OCP awarded another Chinese contractor, Sinoma Construction, an EPC contract for an advanced phosphate processing unit.

  The deal, also announced in January, covers the entire project cycle, including design, procurement, construction and commissioning of chemical facilities.

  The contract won by Sinoma Construction was also its first contract with OCP in Morocco.

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  Indrajit Sen
• 
  Read the February 2026 MEED Business Review

  2 February 2026

  Download / Subscribe / 14-day trial access

  After years of cautious capital discipline, upstream oil and gas spending is gathering pace across the Middle East and beyond, with 2026 shaping up to be a statement year for investment.

  In the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region, oil companies are pushing ahead with projects deemed critical to long-term energy security, even as oil prices soften. Gas and LNG developments are taking an increasingly prominent role, reflecting rising power demand and the search for lower-carbon fuels.

  Globally, North America is set to lead upstream spending through to 2030, but the Middle East remains a close follower, underpinned by low-cost reserves and expanding infrastructure. Read more about what’s driving the next wave of upstream investment here.

  Meanwhile, February’s market focus covers Qatar, where Doha is beginning to reap the rewards of its long-term gas investment, strategic spending and diplomatic efforts.

  This edition also includes MEED’s latest ranking of GCC water developers. In this package, we look at how the water sector has regained momentum, as the value of public-private partnership and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract awards for Mena water infrastructure schemes reached a record level in 2025. 

  In the latest issue, we also examine how Iran's recent protests have elevated regional uncertainty, and reveal that GCC contract awards declined by almost a third in 2025. The team also speaks to Mohamed Youssef of AtkinsRealis about demand drivers and challenges for the Canadian EPC specialist; discusses projects market resilience with US engineering firm Parsons' Pierre Santoni; and highlights how DP World underpins Dubai’s economic growth strategy. 

  MEED’s February edition is also bursting with exclusive leadership insight. Saeed Mohammed Al-Qatami, CEO of Deyaar Development, talks about the need for tomorrow’s communities to move beyond conventional real estate thinking; Ali Al-Dhaheri, managing director and CEO of Tadweer Group, explains why waste-to-energy infrastructure is critical to future energy needs; and Dal Bhatti of global insurance broker Marsh predicts a breakthrough year for Middle East construction in 2026.

  We hope our valued subscribers enjoy the February 2026 issue of MEED Business Review. 

  

   

  Must-read sections in the February 2026 issue of MEED Business Review include:

  > AGENDA: 
  > Mena upstream spending set to soar
  > Global upstream spending to grow

  > CURRENT AFFAIRS: Iran protests elevate regional uncertainty

  INDUSTRY REPORT: MEED's GCC water developer ranking > Regional IWP deals show cautious growth > Pipeline boom lifts Mena water awards

  > PROJECTS: Contract awards decline in 2025

  > LEADERSHIP: Tomorrow’s communities must heal us, not just house us

  > INTERVIEW: Building faster without breaking the programme

  > PORTS: DP World underpins Dubai’s economic growth strategy

  > INTERVIEW: Projects show resilience

  > LEADERSHIP: Energy security starts with rethinking waste

  > LEADERSHIP: Why 2026 is a breakthrough year for Middle East construction

  > MARKET FOCUS QATAR: 
  > COMMENT: Qatar’s strategy falls into place
  > GVT & ECONOMY: Qatar enters 2026 with heady expectations
  > BANKING: Qatar banks search for growth
  > OIL & GAS: QatarEnergy achieves strategic oil and gas goals in 2025
  > POWER & WATER: Dukhan solar award drives Qatar’s utility sector
  > CONSTRUCTION: Infrastructure investments underpin Qatar construction

  > MEED COMMENTS: 
  > Kuwait oil tender delays cause problems for key contractors
  > International Financial Centre Oman will have to differentiate
  > Chinese firm’s Riyadh skyscraper debut signals a shift
  > Ras Al-Khaimah sewage award marks key milestone

  > GULF PROJECTS INDEX: Gulf projects index enters 2026 upbeat

  > DECEMBER 2025 CONTRACTS: Middle East contract awards

  > ECONOMIC DATA: Data drives regional projects

  > OPINION: Trump’s distraction is the region’s gain

  > BUSINESS OUTLOOK: Finance, oil and gas, construction, power and water contracts

  To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here

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  MEED Editorial
• 
  Turner & Townsend to manage Rak Central construction

  2 February 2026

  UK-based Turner & Townsend has been appointed to provide project management services for the Rak Central mixed-use development in the UAE’s northern emirate of Ras Al-Khaimah.

  Rak Central features residential and commercial districts.

  The project will be developed in phases.

  The first phase includes 1 million square feet of commercial office space. It also involves developing 34 residential plots, which will be offered to developers to build residential towers up to 45 storeys.

  The development will comprise three hotels offering more than 1,000 keys and 4,000 residential apartments across five interconnected buildings.

  The first phase is set to open in 2027.

  It is being constructed on Sheikh Mohammed Bin Salem Al-Qasimi Street. 

  In September last year, Ras Al-Khaimah-based master developer Marjan appointed Dubai-based firm Alec as the main contractor for its new headquarters and a mixed-use office complex at Rak Central.

  The complex has been designed by US-based architectural firm Gensler.

  https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15552389/main.png

  Yasir Iqbal
• 
  Adnoc Refining negotiates with naphtha upgrade bidders

  2 February 2026

  

   

  The refining business of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc Refining) is in negotiations with contractors that submitted bids for a key project to maximise naphtha production from its Abu Dhabi refineries.

  Adnoc Refining produces approximately 11 million tonnes a year (t/y) of naphtha, which is categorised into two types: crude naphtha, produced from crude processing in the refineries; and condensate naphtha, obtained from processing condensates.

  The project aims to upgrade Adnoc Refining’s naphtha output to more valuable gasoline products, thereby increasing its overall refinery margin.

  MEED previously reported that contractors had submitted commercial proposals for the naphtha upgrade project by 24 December.

  Since receiving commercial bids, Adnoc Refining has been in commercial negotiations with bidders since January, although no contractor is believed to have emerged as a frontrunner to win the contract, sources told MEED.

  According to sources, Adnoc Refining is seeking a target price of $700m, with bidders asked to match that figure. “At this point, the situation is fluid, and there is room for change. Expect flexibility from both sides [project operator and bidders] in the price negotiation process,” one source said.

  Adnoc Refining issued the main tender for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on the project in May last year. Contractors that submitted technical bids for the project in June are thought to include:

  • Archirodon (Greece)
  • Enppi (Egypt) / Petrojet (Egypt)
  • Kalpataru Projects International (India)
  • Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India)
  • Petrofac (UK)
  • Tecnimont (Italy)

  Following the submission of technical bids, Adnoc Refining engaged bidders in a series of technical clarification meetings, sources previously told MEED.

  Kalpataru Projects International was later disqualified from the tendering exercise by Adnoc Refining, as per sources.

  Adnoc Refining then issued a notification on 4 December to contractors bidding for the contract, requesting that they submit commercial bids by 24 December.

  The main scope of work for the project is to develop an integrated naphtha-producing complex comprising light and heavy naphtha hydrotreater units, light naphtha isomerisation units, two heavy naphtha reformer units and a 50,000-barrel-a-day (b/d) continuous catalytic reformer.

  Separately, Adnoc Refining has stipulated that licensed process technology from France-based Axens will be deployed to operate the units.

  The naphtha upgrade project being advanced by Adnoc Refining is separate from another project being undertaken by the operator to convert incremental volumes of its naphtha output into commercially valuable jet fuel. MEED recently reported that Adnoc Refining awarded a feed contract for the project to Engineers India Limited (EIL).

  Feed-to-EPC contest

  Adnoc Group owns the majority 65% stake in Adnoc Refining, with Italian energy major Eni and Austria’s OMV owning 20% and 15% stakes, respectively, as a result of a $5.8bn transaction completed in 2019.

  Adnoc Refining has a total refining capacity of 922,000 b/d of crude oil and condensates. The company produces over 40 million t/y of refined products, such as liquefied petroleum gas, naphtha, gasoline, jet fuel, gas oil, base oil, fuel oil and petrochemicals feedstocks such as propylene. The company’s specialty products include carbon black and anode coke.

  Adnoc Refining had started a front-end engineering and design (feed)-to-EPC competition for the naphtha upgrade project in March 2024, MEED previously reported, selecting UK-headquartered Petrofac and South Korea’s GS Engineering & Construction to participate in the feed-to-EPC contest for the project.

  The project operator eventually cancelled the feed-to-EPC competition, sources told MEED. The reason for the cancellation could be that “prices that were submitted by the bidders were above budget”, a source said.

  However, the EPC tender issued by Adnoc Refining for the naphtha upgrade project is understood to be based on the feed submission by Petrofac, according to sources.

  The naphtha upgrade project itself is a leaner version of an estimated $3bn-plus project undertaken by Adnoc Refining a few years ago to develop a large-scale refining facility with the capacity to produce 4.2 million t/y of gasoline and 1.6 million t/y of aromatics.

  Adnoc Refining cancelled the gasoline and aromatics project in 2019. The operator has “retained some elements and units that were meant to be developed” in the ongoing naphtha upgrade project, a source previously said.

  

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  Indrajit Sen