Meed | Transport plans underpin Iraq’s reconstruction

Transport plans underpin Iraq’s reconstruction

25 May 2023

MEED's June 2023 special report on Iraq also includes:

> GOVERNMENT: Sudani makes fitful progress as Iraq's premier
> ECONOMY: Iraq hits the spend button
> POWER: Iraq power projects make headway
> UPSTREAM DEVELOPERS: No place like Iraq for international oil firms
> OIL & GAS: Iraq's energy sector steadily expands
> TOTALENERGIES: Total to activate $27bn Iraq contract this year
> TRANSPORT: Baghdad approves funds for metro and airport projects

Iraq’s construction and transport sectors look to be turbocharged by its bumper 2023 budget, which envisages a series of major transport investments, alongside social infrastructure and housing plans.

With its new government in place since last year’s election and fiscally cushioned by higher oil prices, Baghdad has returned its attention to rebuilding and modernising the country’s ailing transport and social infrastructure in 2023.

Between 2016 and 2020, there were reportedly 971 reconstruction projects in the country, 718 of them completed. In 2021, the Fund for the Reconstruction of Areas Affected by Terrorist Operations completed 97 projects at a cost of ID86.7bn ($59.5m).

In 2018, Baghdad also released a forward-looking list of 157 projects in need of investment, with a $88bn price tag. These projects included the upgrade and repair of roads, bridges and airports, new city projects, and the rebuilding of hospitals, telecommunications and oil-related industries.

Despite rising revenues, Iraq’s contract awards in construction and transport decreased from $4.1bn in 2021 to only $0.6bn in 2022, according to MEED Projects.

The much larger awards value for 2021 was bolstered by several major contracts including the Ministry of Education’s selection of China’s Sinotec and Power China for the construction of 1,000 schools in different parts of the country. The contracts, worth $2bn, were part of the “oil for reconstruction” and investment deal signed between Iraq and China in 2019. Under the agreement, Chinese firms work in Iraq in exchange for 100,000 barrels of oil a day.

In 2021, the Basra Provincial Council also awarded a $312m contract to the local Al-Narjess Trading & General Contracting for the phase 2 rehabilitation of roads, drainages and sewerage networks in Zubair City.

Big transport ambitions

Although beset by delays since its 2012 commencement date, the ID7.6tn ($5.8bn) Al-Faw Grand Port masterplan is one of the most significant projects under way in Iraq. Located on the northern tip of the Gulf, it is tentatively set to be completed by 2025.

With this flagship port heading towards the finish line, Baghdad is now making moves to expand upon its logistics potential and, specifically, Iraq’s ability to connect freight from the Gulf directly to Europe.

In April, the design was completed for the high-speed ‘Dry Canal’ rail link to Turkiye planned by the Ministry of Transport (MoT).

The scheme will connect the Al-Faw Grand Port in the south with northern Iraq and Turkiye through 1,200 kilometres of new electric railway track. It is one of the region’s largest rail schemes, and aims to provide a cost-effective overland route to Europe to rival the Suez Canal.

Last year, Italian engineering services company Progetti Europa & Global was appointed to carry out feasibility studies for the project. Current plans envisage high-speed trains operating alongside conventional passenger and freight trains. The MoT plans to tender contracts for the multibillion-dollar project by the end of 2023.

In addition to the rail line, Iraq’s Ministry of Transportation is considering a new highway linking the Al-Faw Port to Turkiye.

More recently, Iraq has approved funding for the first elevated metro in its capital and the expansion of Baghdad International airport, as part of the government’s 2023 budget.

The funds will allow work to proceed on the much-delayed Baghdad elevated train project this year, while the airport expansion could start in the second half of 2023. Plans for the metro date back to the late 1970s, and if it had been built then, it would have been the first urban railway in the Arab world. The metro was also included in the 2022 budget, with the Ministry of Finance allocating $2bn to it.

Baghdad airport currently operates three terminals, each designed for 2.5 million passengers a year. The expansion will increase the capacity to 15 million passengers.

Other airport projects are also under way. In March 2022, the foundation stone was laid for Anbar International airport, and in April of that year, then prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi gave the green light for the rehabilitation of Mosul airport.

In 2021, China State Construction Engineering Corporation finalised a $367m deal for the revived Nasiriyah International airport in Dhi Qar, with works commencing in February 2023.

In the past few months, Iraq has also announced over 150 public service and development projects in the capital Baghdad, including 70 road developments, pavements, bridges and overpasses, estimated to cost nearly $17bn over the first two phases.

Housing capacity

Meanwhile, Iraq’s housing shortfall of three million homes is rapidly becoming a major housing crisis for the government. The situation is being exacerbated by Iraq’s rising population. According to UN projections, the country’s population is projected to swell to 50 million by 2030, from around 44 million today.

Baghdad is advancing various large residential schemes to address this, the largest expected to be awarded this year being the mixed-use New Babylon City project. This is being developed by the Ministry of Housing at an estimated cost of $1.03bn. State entities are also taking matters into their own hands. Basra Oil Company, for example, is developing a $156m residential complex for its employees.

Yet such projects alone are unlikely to meet the soaring demand for affordable housing, which looks set to remain a key priority for the government for the foreseeable future.

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Eva Levesque

Exclusive from Meed

Tender issued for Libyan gas project
17 September 2026
Aldar and Mubadala acquire Masdar City Square
17 September 2026
Dubai announces new 80km highway corridor
16 September 2026
Engineering progresses on Ras Laffan LNG terminal berths
16 September 2026
Design completed for Libyan oil field development
16 September 2026

Tender issued for Libyan gas project
17 September 2026
An invitation to bid has been issued for a contract to conduct environmental assessments for the project to expand the Mellitah oil and gas complex in Libya.

The bid submission deadline is 2pm today (17 September) Libyan time.

The scope of the project includes provision of:
- An environmental baseline study (EBS)
- An environmental impact assessment (EIA)
- An environmental management plan (EMP)
The client is Mellitah Oil & Gas (MOG), which is a joint venture of Italy’s Eni and Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC).

MOG is based in Tripoli and operates both onshore and offshore oil and gas facilities.

The joint venture owns and operates six major oil and gas fields across the North African country.

According to the tender documents, the company that is awarded the contract will need to prepare environmental management measures in compliance with:
- Libyan environmental legislation
- Ministry of Environment requirements
- NOC environmental guidelines
- Applicable international environmental standards and best practices
The expansion of the Mellitah oil and gas complex is part of a project estimated to be worth $8bn.

The wider project is known as the Mellitah Complex Expansion & CO2 Management Integrated Development Project.

It has six main packages:
- Onshore package
- Offshore Structure A
- Offshore Structure E
- Subsea pipeline package
- Site preparation work
- Carbon capture and storage facility
Security issues and political instability have been a major problem for Libya’s oil and gas sector since the country’s civil war started in 2011.

Earlier this month, the Mellitah oil and gas complex was forced to shut down temporarily due to a protest over deteriorating public services.

The existing onshore complex includes housing, processing units, storage facilities and export facilities.

It also serves as the launch point for the Greenstream pipeline, which delivers Libyan gas directly to Italy.

The planned expansion of the complex will involve:
- Construction of a new fourth gas processing train
- Construction of a third condensate train
- Construction of a third natural gas liquids fractionation train
- Construction of a fourth sulphur recovery unit train
- Installation of a hydrogen sulphide enrichment unit
- Installation of a sulphur recovery unit
- Construction of other associated facilities
The Mellitah complex is located about 100 kilometres west of Tripoli and is a key energy facility in the west of the country.
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Wil Crisp
Aldar and Mubadala acquire Masdar City Square
17 September 2026

Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Company and local developer Aldar have completed the acquisition of Masdar City Square at Masdar City, in a transaction valued at AED918m ($250m).

The deal was executed through their joint venture established in 2024.

Masdar City Square comprises more than 47,000 square metres (sq m) of net leasable area across seven office buildings.

Completed in Q1 2026, the development is 99% occupied. Tenants include Taqa, the Department of Energy, Emirates College and the Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence.

The transaction expands the joint venture’s real estate portfolio in Masdar City, which is now valued at AED4.7bn ($1.3bn).

Masdar City is one of the region’s leading hubs for clean energy, artificial intelligence, advanced research and sustainable urban development.

The joint venture acquired The Link project at Masdar City for AED654m ($178m) in April.

Comprising about 32,000 sq m of net leasable area across five buildings, The Link is fully leased to a portfolio of major tenants, including Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) and the Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence.

The asset includes Grade A, Leed Platinum office space, a net-zero-energy headquarters building, a multi-use hall and residential accommodation, supporting its position as a high-performing, integrated component of Masdar City.

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Yasir Iqbal
Dubai announces new 80km highway corridor
16 September 2026

Dubai has approved the construction of the new fourth corridor, a major highway programme aimed at boosting inter-emirate connectivity, increasing road capacity and easing congestion.

The corridor will extend 80 kilometres, from Al-Faya Road in Abu Dhabi to Al-Shanouf Road in Sharjah.

It will include 12 lanes, 72 bridges and 17 tunnels.

The project is expected to reduce travel times by up to 60% and serve more than 3.1 million people, while providing links to Al-Maktoum International airport and Etihad Rail.

It will have the capacity to accommodate 24,000 vehicles per hour in each direction.

The project will be delivered in two phases. The first phase, running from Al-Shanouf Road to Dubai-Al Ain Road, will be delivered at a cost of AED3.5bn ($953m).

The second phase will stretch from Dubai-Al Ain Road to Al-Faya Road in Abu Dhabi.

Hamdan bin Mohammed: In line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to boost investment in infrastructure, I approved the New Fourth Corridor to strengthen Dubai’s road network and enhance connectivity with the UAE’s federal road network.… pic.twitter.com/zlIyY2yKBN

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) September 16, 2026

The scheme adds a fourth spine to a network that has long relied on three main corridors: the E11 (Sheikh Zayed Road/Al-Ittihad Road); the E311 (Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Road) and the E611 (Emirates Road), which together carry more than 850,000 vehicles commuting between Dubai and the northern emirates daily.

That concentration has made the route one of the country’s most congested, with peak-hour bottlenecks a persistent problem for residents. The new corridor is designed to divert a significant share of that traffic onto a higher-capacity route, rather than add pressure to the existing network.

The project also aligns with the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan, which anticipates population growth to 5.8 million by 2040 and calls for the expansion of roads, railways, airports and ports to support that growth and reinforce Dubai’s position as a global trading hub. This is reflected in the corridor’s direct links to Al-Maktoum International airport and Etihad Rail.

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Yasir Iqbal

Engineering progresses on Ras Laffan LNG terminal berths

16 September 2026

Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access

Front-end engineering and design (feed) works are progressing on a QatarEnergy LNG project to build 13 liquefied natural gas (LNG) loading berths at the south export terminal in Qatar’s Ras Laffan Industrial City.

Ras Laffan Industrial City, which lies about 90 kilometres north of Doha, is the world's largest integrated LNG production and export complex, comprising 15 processing trains with a total capacity of 77.5 million tonnes a year (t/y). QatarEnergy began LNG operations at the facility, which houses all its processing trains and export infrastructure, in 1984.

According to sources, QatarEnergy LNG, a subsidiary of state enterprise QatarEnergy, awarded the feed contract for the project to build 13 LNG berths at the south export terminal at Ras Laffan to Australia-headquartered Worley.

The contract was awarded to Worley in the second quarter of this year. Its duration is estimated to be 200,000-250,000 man hours, sources told MEED.

Ras Laffan’s LNG processing and export capabilities will increase by up to about 63% when the three phases of QatarEnergy’s estimated $40bn North Field LNG expansion project come into operation by the end of this decade. Engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on all three projects are progressing.

QatarEnergy is understood to have committed nearly $30bn to the first two phases – North Field East (NFE) and North Field South (NFS) – which will lift Qatar’s LNG production capacity from 77.5 million t/y to 126 million t/y by 2028.

QatarEnergy awarded the main EPC contracts for NFE in 2021. The project was intended to raise LNG output to 110 million t/y by 2025. The $13bn EPC package – covering the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of four LNG trains, each with a capacity of 8 million t/y – was awarded in February 2021 to a consortium of Japan’s Chiyoda and France’s Technip Energies.

In May 2023, QatarEnergy awarded the $10bn main EPC contract for NFS to a consortium of Technip Energies and Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC). The contract includes two LNG trains, each with a capacity of 7.8 million t/y.

Once fully operational, the first two phases are expected to add 48 million t/y of LNG supply to the global market.

QatarEnergy took the final investment decision on the third phase, North Field West (NFW), this year, awarding an EPC contract estimated at $8bn to a joint venture comprising Technip Energies, CCC and Gulf Asia Contracting in February.

Chiyoda carried out the feed work for the NFW LNG project.

The NFW scope covers the EPC of two LNG trains with a combined capacity of 16 million t/y, as well as associated facilities for gas treatment, natural gas liquids recovery and helium extraction.

In addition to LNG, NFW is expected to produce about 175,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day of condensate, ethane and liquefied petroleum gas.

With all three phases under EPC execution – and NFE scheduled for commissioning later this year – QatarEnergy is positioning itself to remain one of the world’s largest LNG suppliers in the long term.

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

Nuclear power ambitions gather pace; Kuwait keeps dealmaking alive despite war; Region invests in raising gas processing capacity.

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

> AGENDA: Gulf nuclear revival takes shape

> MARKET FOCUS: Kuwait keeps dealmaking alive under fire

> INDUSTRY REPORT: Gas processing takes centre stage in Mena region

> INTERVIEW: Emsteel persists with business productivity and efficiency

> TUNNELS: The Gulf’s next construction boom is happening underground

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

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Indrajit Sen

Design completed for Libyan oil field development

16 September 2026

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Design work has been completed for a project to develop Libya’s I/R oil field, according to industry sources.

The front-end engineering and design work was completed by a team in the London offices of Italy’s EniProgetti and paves the way for the main engineering, procurement and construction contract to be tendered.

One source said: “At the moment, there is no fixed date for when the invitation to bid for the main contract will be issued, but the project has a lot of momentum and is progressing towards tendering.”

The I/R oil field is located in Murzuq Basin in southwestern Libya.

In June this year, Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) signed a unified operating agreement for the field.

The I/R field is operated by Akakus Oil Operations, which is a joint venture of NOC in partnership with Spain’s Repsol, France’s TotalEnergies Repsol, Austria’s OMV and Norway’s Equinor.

The agreement in June was signed by NOC as well as its concession partners.

NOC said the agreement would unify operational and administrative procedures related to field management, optimise resource utilisation and support production sustainability.