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• 
  Gulf races to reroute trade

  1 June 2026

  

   

  The Strait of Hormuz has been the jugular vein of global energy markets for decades. A mere 33 kilometres (km) wide at its narrowest point, the maritime chokepoint has historically carried roughly one-sixth of the world’s oil consumption and one-third of its liquefied natural gas.

  With Iran effectively closing the strait in 2026, the Gulf has been forced into an accelerated search for alternative shipping routes – not only for oil exports leaving the region, but also for the imports of food, consumer goods and industrial inputs that keep Gulf economies running.

  Fujairah expansion

  The importance of alternative logistics routes was illustrated on 17 April, when UAE President Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan conducted a high-profile inspection of Fujairah port. During the tour, the leadership reviewed operations intended to ensure business continuity at the highest levels of efficiency and affirmed the port’s role as a key UAE asset supporting the international energy market. 

  Data released after a visit by the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Suhail Mohamed Al-Mazrouei on 30 April underscored the scale of the shift. He said that since the spike in tensions, container handling had surged past 262,000 units at eastern ports. To sustain flows, about 4,800 trucks are operating daily, supported by a network monitoring 1,200 vessels within UAE waters.

  Fujairah port’s throughput has increased twentyfold, while daily truck movements have risen thirtyfold compared to pre-crisis levels. The storage footprint has expanded to over 7 million square metres. Crucially for regional partners, Fujairah has dedicated areas to handle more than 2.8 million metric tonnes of bulk cargo arriving from other GCC countries.

  The strategic importance of Fujairah was underlined on 4 May when Iran launched 12 ballistic missiles, three cruise missiles and four drones targeting the emirate, setting an oil facility ablaze and injuring three Indian nationals. 

  On the same day, an Adnoc- affiliated crude oil tanker was struck by drones while transiting the strait.

  The attack on the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone targeted a hub hosting major midstream players including Saudi Aramco, Vopak Horizon and Adnoc.

  Fujairah also serves as the terminus for the 300km Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP), linking the Habshan oil facility to the eastern seaboard and enabling the UAE to export a significant portion of Murban crude without entering the Gulf.

  Fujairah’s strategic importance will grow further. The West-East crude oil pipeline that Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) is building from Jebel Dhanna in Abu Dhabi to the emirate of Fujairah is set to be commissioned in 2027.

  Following a meeting of Adnoc Group’s board of directors on 15 May, the Abu Dhabi Media Office issued a statement saying that Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohamed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council,  “directed Adnoc to accelerate delivery of the project, as the company moves forward into a new phase of world-scale project execution to meet global energy demand”.

  The cross-country project involves constructing a pipeline to transport crude from Adnoc’s main export terminal at Jebel Dhanna to the Fujairah terminal, a distance of about 520km. Once commissioned, it will double Adnoc’s crude export capacity through Fujairah on the Indian Ocean coast, enabling shipments to bypass the geopolitically sensitive Strait of Hormuz.

  The West-East crude oil pipeline will double Adnoc’s crude export capacity through Fujairah

  Import routes

  Diversifying export routes for crude is only one dimension of the post-Hormuz landscape.

  The broader GCC economy must also keep goods flowing in. Food, consumer goods, construction materials, medical supplies and spare parts are all vital to Gulf economies. To help maintain a steady stream of imports, a ‘Green Corridor’ was activated on 13 March between Dubai and Oman. It allows goods destined for the UAE to be offloaded at Omani seaports such as Sohar or Salalah and transported by land through the Hatta border.

  Retail and logistics players have tested unconventional routes as well. UAE supermarket chain Spinneys conducted a trial shipment of dry goods from the UK involving Mediterranean Sea crossings to Egypt and overland transit through Saudi Arabia, including the use of the Port of Neom on the Red Sea coast.

  Logistics hub

  On 20 May, Fujairah Terminals, part of AD Ports Group, announced the signing of three strategic land lease agreements with Fujairah International airport, Fujairah Free Zone Authority and Al-Dahra Agriculture Trading. The agreements aim to enhance connectivity and unlock new commercial opportunities across regional and international markets, while supporting the development of logistics and industrial capabilities and enabling more efficient use of port and adjacent infrastructure.

  The leased lands have a combined area of 130,000 square metres and will be used to enhance Fujairah Terminals’ logistics capabilities, reinforcing Fujairah’s role as a key gateway for regional and global trade and supporting the UAE’s position as a leading hub for logistics, maritime services and industrial growth.

  Saudi Arabia is also using its pipelines to bypass the Hormuz. Saudi Aramco’s East-West pipeline has reached its maximum capacity of 7 million barrels a day. Aramco president and CEO Amin Nasser recently said the company’s first-quarter performance reflected “strong resilience and operational flexibility in a complex geopolitical environment”, describing the pipeline as a “critical supply artery” that mitigated the impact of a global energy shock.

  For other Gulf countries the options are more limited. Shipping monitors have reported that Kuwait recorded zero crude exports in April – the first such occurrence since the 1991 Gulf War. Kuwait normally ships almost all of its 3 million barrels a day (b/d) of exports through Hormuz. Output reportedly fell to 500,000 b/d in March as storage reached capacity. With oil sales accounting for roughly 90% of government revenue, the effect on the Kuwaiti treasury has been severe. 

  Bahrain and Qatar have similar geographical challenges.

  The crisis has revived talk of multinational pipelines bypassing the strait. A working paper from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy proposes a Gulf Super Express Pipeline that would begin in southern Iraq’s Basra oil fields, cross Kuwait, run along the Saudi coast to pick up additional volumes, then cross the UAE and terminate on Oman’s Arabian Sea coast at Duqm and Salalah. The proposal envisages twin 56-inch lines with a combined capacity of 10 million b/d, and includes $10.1bn for defence and hardening. Total capital expenditure is estimated at $55.6bn. 

  Proponents argue the security premium could be $1-$2 a barrel to ensure that half the region’s exportable capacity remains accessible should the Strait of Hormuz be closed.

  These projects will create a steady workload for the construction industry in the years ahead

  Rail revival

  For other goods, rail is increasingly being promoted as the key to resilience. 

  The GCC has upcoming rail projects worth more than $140bn. An important project is the Hafeet Rail scheme, which is a 238km line connecting Oman’s port of Sohar to the UAE’s Etihad Rail network. As of April 2026, the project is 40% complete. Once operational, a single freight train would be able to transport 15,000 tonnes of cargo – equivalent to 270 standard containers – providing a high-capacity, land-based alternative to coastal shipping.

  Future projects linking GCC states are being accelerated too. On 7 May, Saudi Arabia Railways began the procurement process to deliver its portion of the GCC railway, which will connect all six member states. The kingdom’s section of the railway will start at Al-Khafji in the Eastern Province, near the border with Kuwait, and end at Al-Batha, at Saudi Arabia’s border with the UAE. The Saudi section will span approximately 672km and interface with the Kuwait National Rail Road project on the Kuwaiti side. 

  The wider GCC railway network will span 2,186km, beginning in Kuwait, passing through Dammam in Saudi Arabia, reaching Bahrain via a planned causeway, and continuing onwards to Qatar, the UAE and Oman through the Hafeet Rail link.

  These projects – encompassing pipelines, ports, railways and associated roads – will  create a steady workload for the region’s construction industry in the years ahead and, more importantly, will enhance the GCC’s economic resilience following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. 

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  Colin Foreman
• 
  Egypt prepares to tender five water treatment plants

  25 May 2026

  Egypt is preparing to tender five seawater desalination and industrial wastewater treatment plants under its public-private partnership (PPP) programme.

  The projects will be offered to local and international investors through competitive PPP tenders, Atter Hannoura, head of the PPP unit at the Finance Ministry, has told a local Arabic news channel.

  The first of these involves a plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, which will be launched “immediately after the Eid Al-Adha holiday”, Hannoura said.

  In January 2025, MEED exclusively reported that SCZone Istithmar had invited interested firms to prequalify to bid for a contract to develop a seawater desalination plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone.

  SCZOne Istithmar is wholly owned by the General Authority for Suez Canal Economic Zone.

  The Finance Ministry’s PPP Central Unit, along with the European Bank for Reconstruction & Development, is supporting SCZone Isthithmar in the project’s tender proceedings.

  The opportunity entails a long-term water-purchase agreement to design, finance, build, operate, maintain and transfer the plant’s ownership.

  It was previously reported that this planned seawater desalination plant will have a capacity of 250,000 cubic metres a day (cm/d). 

  Hannoura added that the government is in negotiations with several companies, including Saudi Arabia-based Acwa, regarding large-scale desalination projects.

  Additionally, the government plans to tender four industrial wastewater treatment plants, with the first two projects expected to be launched “within 45 days”.

  One of these will be located in the Amreya industrial area in Alexandria, while the other will be in the Abu Rawash area in Giza, Hannoura said. Details of the other projects were not disclosed.

  Alexandria wastewater treatment plant

  The Authority for Potable Water and Wastewater is planning to build a wastewater treatment plant in eastern Alexandria.

  The $150m facility will have a water treatment capacity of 300,000 cm/d.

  In June 2025, Egypt’s government approved a financing and grant agreement for the project, with financing from the French Development Agency amounting to €68m and a grant of €2m.

  Expression of interest documents were previously submitted in September 2024.

  The main contract for this plant had been expected to be released in June.

  Wastewater upgrades

  Separately, the Construction Authority for Potable Water & Wastewater retendered the phase four expansion of the Abu Rawash wastewater treatment plant in Giza Governorate in January.

  The $157m scheme will be developed under a design, build, operate and maintain contract.

  The plant will have a treatment capacity of 400,000 cm/d, rising to peak flows of 520,000 cm/d. The authority issued the initial main contract tender last August. 

  It is unconfirmed whether this has moved beyond the bidding stage.

  Egypt currently produces between 1.5 million cm/d and 2 million cm/d of desalinated water. The country aims to increase capacity to between 8 million cm/d and 9 million cm/d by 2050.

  In March, Egypt’s cabinet approved a $1.2m grant agreement with the European Investment Bank to support wastewater treatment upgrades in Alexandria and Damietta.

  Part of the funding will support plans to expand the Hanovil wastewater treatment plant in Alexandria Governorate.

  The project will add 50,000 cm/d of treatment capacity in two phases within the plant’s existing footprint. Once completed, the facility will reach a total capacity of 100,000 cm/d.

  The grant will also support expansion works at the Kafr El-Battikh wastewater treatment plant in Damietta Governorate.

  The facility currently receives more than 7,000 cm/d of wastewater, while its treatment capacity is 3,000 cm/d.

  

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  Mark Dowdall
• 
  Momentum builds for Syrian projects

  25 May 2026

  

   

  Support from the US, as well as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, has increased expectations about the development of infrastructure projects in Syria.

  On 22 May, the US published guides to investing in Syria, funded by the US Department of State, that pointed investors towards 590 planned projects in the country.

  The permanent removal of US sanctions in December last year, combined with fallout from the closure and disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, has boosted interest in planned projects in the country.

  Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been disrupted since the US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February.

  The route normally transports about 11 million barrels a day of oil and around 20% of the world’s liquefied natural gas, as well as a range of other key materials and consumer goods.

  The disruption to shipping through the strait has left nations in the Middle East scrambling to find new routes for imports and exports – and Syria plays a role in many of these new plans.

  This has bolstered the country’s plans to become a regional trade hub.

  Energy corridors

  Already, Iraq is moving a large volume of oil by truck across the country to export it from Syria’s Mediterranean ports, such as Latakia or Tartous.

  In April, Iraq’s state-owned oil marketing company, Somo, said it had awarded contracts to supply about 650,000 metric tonnes of fuel oil per month for overland trucking across Syria.

  On top of this, Iraq is currently looking into reestablishing a pipeline route that transported oil from Kirkuk to the port of Baniyas in Syria.

  The pipeline originally went into operation in April 1952.

  During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the pipeline was damaged by US air strikes and has remained out of operation since then.

  There have been repeated attempts to either refurbish the existing pipeline or build a new one along the same route, but none has been successful.

  In December 2007, Syria and Iraq agreed to rehabilitate the pipeline. The pipeline was to be reconstructed by Stroytransgaz, a subsidiary of Russia’s Gazprom.

  However, Stroytransgaz failed to start the rehabilitation, and the contract was nullified in April 2009.

  The disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has added a new urgency to the project to reestablish pipeline flows from Iraq to Baniyas.

  Syria could also play a role in plans for a pipeline to transport gas from Qatar to Europe via Syria and Turkiye.

  The country could additionally form part of plans to rehabilitate and expand the Arab Gas Pipeline.

  The pipeline connects Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, although the Lebanese section is not currently operational.

  Trade routes

  Beyond oil and gas, Syria is emerging as a key part of other plans for new trade routes.

  Earlier this month, Syria’s Transport Minister Yarub Badr said the country was seeking to restore its role as a regional transit corridor linking Europe and the Gulf by reviving cross-border trucking and rehabilitating railway connections with neighbouring countries.

  He said the overland corridor between the Turkish and Jordanian borders handled between 100,000 and 115,000 trucks annually in both directions before 2011. Freight rail services also operated between Tartous port and Iraq’s Umm Qasr port via Baghdad in 2009, he added.

  He said Syria was coordinating with Turkiye, Jordan and Saudi Arabia to simplify customs and border-crossing procedures and facilitate freight movement.

  Railway rehabilitation is expected to take longer due to extensive infrastructure damage and the suspension of cross-border rail links over the past decade.

  Badr said Syria is working with the World Bank to secure grants ranging between $65m and $200m to support railway rehabilitation and restore Syria’s role as a regional transit route linking Turkiye, Syria, Jordan and Iraq.

  Earlier this month, Syria’s state-owned railway company, the General Establishment for Syrian Railways, and the operator of Syria’s Latakia International Container Terminal signed a memorandum of understanding to coordinate container traffic between the Mediterranean port of Latakia and inland freight hubs.

  The framework covers feasibility studies for moving containers by rail from Latakia to dry ports in Adra, Hasiya and Aleppo.

  The feasibility studies are expected to take four months to complete.

  Tartous port

  Also this month, executives from the UAE’s DP World and Syria’s General Authority for Borders and Customs (GABC) met to discuss accelerating the development of Syria’s Port of Tartous.

  Essa Kazim, chairman of DP World, met with Qutaiba Ahmed Badawi, chairman of GABC, to discuss opportunities to enhance infrastructure and logistics efficiency, ensuring the Port of Tartous is well-equipped to handle the anticipated rise in trade and cargo volume.

  DP World’s plans to develop the Port of Tartous form part of a 30-year concession agreement signed in July 2025 with the Syrian government.

  Under the agreement, DP World committed to invest $800m to upgrade infrastructure, expand capacity, and introduce modern cargo-handling and advanced digital systems.

  DP World has said that, by fast-tracking the development of the Port of Tartous, it aims to boost its operational efficiency and capacity to handle diverse cargo types, including general cargo, containers, breakbulk and roll-on/roll-off traffic.

  Rizwan Soomar, DP World’s chief executive and managing director for Central Asia, the Levant and Egypt, said: “The Port of Tartous development marks a defining moment in Syria’s journey of economic recovery and modernisation of its trade infrastructure. We are proud to contribute to this vital phase of growth.”

  Located on Syria’s Mediterranean coast, the Port of Tartus is the country’s second-largest port and a key maritime gateway to trade routes across Europe, the Levant and North Africa.

  Beyond the port itself, DP World is exploring other opportunities to develop infrastructure in Syria with local stakeholders. These include logistics zones, inland freight hubs and transit corridors.

  US interest

  US-based companies are also showing significant interest in participating in new projects in the country.

  On 19 May, a delegation from the Houston-headquartered engineering company KBR travelled to Damascus to discuss road networks and infrastructure projects in Syria.

  During one meeting, Syria’s transport minister outlined strategic projects currently underway, including north-south and east-west corridor projects, the Damascus-Aleppo highway and railway initiatives.

  Badr said that companies were needed to update economic and technical studies for some projects.

  While Syria and the US both have bold ambitions to expand Syria into a regional trade and logistics hub, the poor state of the country’s infrastructure is likely to be a key challenge.

  It is likely that billions of dollars will need to be invested to rehabilitate the country so that its capacity to transport goods returns to levels seen prior to the civil war that began in March 2011.

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  Wil Crisp
• 
  Alec confirms Sphere Abu Dhabi contract award

  25 May 2026

  Alec Holdings has confirmed that its subsidiary Alec Engineering & Contracting has received a letter of award for the construction contract for the $1.7bn Sphere Abu Dhabi project.

  MEED had previously reported that Alec was the selected contractor and had been working on the project during the pre-construction phase. The construction is due to be completed in the third quarter of the financial year 2029.

  Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture & Tourism (DCT Abu Dhabi) and US-based Sphere Entertainment announced earlier in May that they have selected Yas Island as the location for the project.

  The venue will be built on a plot between Yas Mall and SeaWorld Abu Dhabi, close to Yas Island’s theme parks and attractions. The project will be the first Sphere venue outside the US. It is expected to echo the scale of Sphere Las Vegas, with a capacity of up to 20,000 depending on configuration.

  DCT and Sphere Entertainment finalised an agreement last year for the construction, development and operation of the Sphere entertainment venue in Abu Dhabi. According to the agreement, Sphere Entertainment granted DCT the exclusive rights to build and operate the Sphere Abu Dhabi entertainment venue.

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  > Be recognised among the best in the industry at the MEED Projects Awards 2026 …

  

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  Colin Foreman
• 
  Expo Riyadh tenders Saudi Arabia pavilion

  22 May 2026

  

   

  Expo 2030 Riyadh Company (ERC), tasked with delivering the Expo 2030 Riyadh venue, has tendered a contract to build the Saudi Arabia pavilion at the site.

  The tender was issued on 19 May, with a bid submission deadline of 26 August.

  The pavilion is a major asset located within the KSA District on the eastern side of the Expo 2030 Riyadh masterplan, within the Loop of Nations district.

  The tendering of the pavilion structure follows swift progress on the site’s infrastructure development works.

  In April, ERC awarded two contracts for the next phase of infrastructure works at the site to local firm Al-Yamama Company.

  The scope covers the construction of road networks and infrastructure for water, sewage, electricity, telecommunications and electric vehicle charging.

  These awards followed ERC’s January award of an estimated SR1bn ($267m) contract for initial infrastructure works at the site to local firm Nesma & Partners. That scope covers about 50 kilometres of integrated infrastructure networks, including internal roads and essential utilities such as water, sewage, electrical and communication systems, and electric vehicle charging stations.

  The overall infrastructure works – covering the construction of main utilities and civil works at Expo 2030 Riyadh – are split into three packages:

  • Lot 1 covers the main utilities corridor
  • Lot 2 includes the northern cluster of the nature corridor
  • Lot 3 comprises the southern cluster of the nature corridor 

  The masterplan encompasses an area of 6 square kilometres, making it one of the largest sites designated for a World Expo event. Situated to the north of the Saudi capital, the site will be located near the future King Salman International airport, and will provide direct access to various landmarks within Riyadh.

  The Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, launched ERC – a wholly owned subsidiary – in June last year to build and operate facilities for Expo 2030.

  ---

  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

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  Yasir Iqbal