meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

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.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/10884758/main.gif
Eva Levesque

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

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Top deals signed at Dubai Airshow 2025

    27 November 2025

    The Dubai Airshow 2025 drew to a close on 21 November, with deals exceeding $202bn, double the $101bn secured at the 18th edition in 2023. 

    This new milestone reinforces Dubai’s position as a global aviation hub and central force shaping the future of the aviation and space industries, according to a statement from the Government of Dubai Media Office.

    The 19th edition of the event, held at Dubai World Central under the theme ‘The Future is Here’, also drew record attendance, welcoming 248,788 visitors, including industry leaders, government officials and aviation specialists from across the globe. 

    More than 1,500 exhibitors took part, with 440 participating for the first time, along with 490 military and civil delegations from 115 countries. The show also included 21 national pavilions, 98 chalets, an extra 8,000 square metres of display space, and a startup ecosystem with 120 startups and 50 investors.

    One of the most globally diverse editions to date, this year’s airshow featured the usual mega-orders, but also a surprise fleet pivot and an emerging picture of the region’s biggest players taking control of their futures by influencing the development of tomorrow’s jets and securing their supply chains. 

    Anchor customer

    UAE national carriers placed orders for 502 aircraft during the five-day event, with Emirates leading the charge. On the first day of the airshow, Emirates announced a $38bn order for 65 new Boeing 777-9 aircraft. The airline also ordered 130 GE9X engines from GE Aerospace, which power the new twin-engined planes. 

    The deal gives Boeing a boost after the 777-9’s debut was delayed to 2027 – but equally significantly, it provides strong backing for Boeing’s feasibility study to develop the 777-10, a larger variant of its 777X family, as Emirates pushes to replace its Airbus A380 fleet.

    “Emirates has been open about the fact that we are keen for manufacturers to build larger capacity aircraft, which are more efficient to operate, especially with projected air traffic growth and increasing constraints at airports,” said Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, chairman and chief executive of Emirates Airline and Group.

    “We fully support Boeing’s feasibility study to develop the 777-10 and have options to convert our latest 777-9 order to the 777-10 or the 777-8.”

    Several days later, Emirates also ordered eight more A350-900 aircraft, worth $3.4bn and powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB84 engines, while also urging Airbus to explore a larger version of its A350-1000 wide-body.

    Emirates’ commitment to new aircraft at the Dubai Airshow 2025 is worth $41.4bn at list prices, and brings the airline’s total wide-body aircraft orders to 375, with deliveries scheduled through 2038.

    It was also announced that Emirates would deploy Starlink Wi-Fi across its entire in-service fleet, beginning with Boeing 777 aircraft in November 2025 and completing the rollout by mid-2027.

    Airbus pivot

    Flydubai also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Boeing to purchase 75 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft valued at $13bn. In one of the show’s biggest strategic shifts, a further MoU was signed with Airbus for 150 A321neo aircraft, making the airline a new Airbus customer.

    Sheikh Ahmed, also chairman and CEO of flydubai, said this addition would diversify the airline’s narrow-body fleet and “enable flydubai to play a key role in the success of Dubai World Central’s expansion plans, an airport we aim to become the largest airport in the world”.

    “We look forward to establishing a strong and enduring partnership between flydubai and Airbus,” he said. 

    Etihad Airways confirmed an order for 32 new Airbus aircraft, including freighters, marking a significant expansion of its wide-body fleet, while Gulf Air, Bahrain’s national carrier, finalised a firm order for 15 787 Dreamliners with options for three more as the carrier looks to further develop its international network. The order adds three Boeing 787s to the airline’s commitment this July and brings Gulf Air’s order book to 17 of the versatile widebody jets.

    Saudi Arabia's emerging airline, Riyadh Air, confirmed a purchase of 120 CFM LEAP-1A engines for its incoming A321neo fleet.

    Taking control

    In a clear sign that Gulf airlines are taking charge of their supply chains, Emirates and France's Safran Seats signed an MoU to bring a manufacturing and plane seat assembly factory to Dubai. The joint industrial cooperation, the first of its kind, will initially focus on Emirates’ business and economy class seats for cabin retrofit projects, with plans to expand into new aircraft in the future.

    “This agreement with Safran marks a pivotal and strategic cooperation that establishes Dubai as an aerospace manufacturing hub,” commented Sheikh Ahmed. “We're bringing world-class seat production capabilities and supply chain to our doorstep, creating highly skilled jobs, and developing capabilities to support Emirates and produce seats for export to other carriers.”

    Emirates is also securing its own engine maintenance capabilities, signing an MoU with Rolls Royce to conduct engine maintenance, repair and overhaul on its own A380 fleet at a new plant in Dubai from 2027.

    Green airline fuel

    Sustainability was a core priority at the airshow, with initiatives including the supply of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for participating aircraft, the use of electric and propane-powered ground support equipment in partnership with Jetex, and exhibition halls run entirely on renewable energy.

    On the sidelines of the event, Emirates and Enoc Group signed a memorandum of understanding to explore and develop joint initiatives for the supply of SAF to Emirates at its Dubai hub.

    Defence deals

    Capping the exhibition were the 36 deals signed on behalf of the Ministry of Defence and Abu Dhabi Police by the UAE’s Tawazun council – the national authority mandated to enable, regulate and sustain the UAE’s defence and security industrial ecosystem. Valued at AED25.455bn, the deals included contracts for drones, rescue gear, aircraft parts and support.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15167232/main.gif
    Marianne Makdisi
  • Prequalification begins for Riyadh King Salman Stadium

    27 November 2025

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Saudi Arabia’s Sports Ministry has issued a notice inviting companies to prequalify for a contract to design and build the King Salman International Stadium in Riyadh.

    The notice was issued on 26 November, with a prequalification deadline of 16 February.

    The stadium will cover an area of about 660,000 square metres (sq m) and will have a seating capacity of 92,000.

    The stadium will feature a 150-seat royal suite, 120 hospitality suites, 300 VIP seats and 2,200 dignitary seats.

    The plan also includes several sports facilities covering more than 360,000 sq m, including two training fields and fan zones; a closed sports hall; an Olympic-sized swimming pool; an athletics track; and outdoor courts for volleyball, basketball and padel.

    The new stadium will host the final of the 2034 Fifa World Cup and will serve as the Saudi national football team’s main headquarters.

    US-based architectural firm Populous is the lead architect for the stadium.

    Construction of the stadium is expected to be completed by 2029.

    The stadium will be located next to King Abdulaziz Park.

    Saudi Arabia stadium plans

    In August last year, MEED reported that Saudi Arabia plans to build 11 new stadiums to host the Fifa World Cup in 2034.

    Eight stadiums will be located in Riyadh, four in Jeddah and one each in Al-Khobar, Abha and Neom.

    An additional 10 cities will host training bases. These are Al-Baha, Jazan, Taif, Medina, Alula, Umluj, Tabuk, Hail, Al-Ahsa and Buraidah.

    There are expected to be 134 training sites across the kingdom, including 61 existing facilities and 73 new training venues.

    The kingdom was officially selected to host the 2034 Fifa World Cup through an online convention of Fifa member associations at the Fifa Congress on 11 December 2024.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15166460/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Morocco signs $861m deal for polysilicon plant

    27 November 2025

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Morocco has signed a MD8bn ($861m) investment agreement with GPM Holding to establish the country’s first polysilicon manufacturing plant in the southern province of Tan-Tan.

    GPM Holding is a US-based company and a key partner in Green Power Morocco (GPM), which specialises in the installation and maintenance of photovoltaic solar panels.

    GPM is a joint venture with UAE-based renewable energy company Amea Power.

    The planned facility will be located in the El-Ouatia industrial zone, according to the North African country’s Ministry of Investment.

    The facility will have an annual production capacity of 30,000 tonnes, with 85% earmarked for export.

    The plant is expected to generate 1,500 direct and more than 2,000 indirect jobs and strengthen Morocco’s position in renewable energy supply chains, particularly in the manufacturing of solar panel components, according to the Ministry of Investment.

    Last year, GPM completed a 34MW solar project in Hjar Nhal, south of Tangier, under a corporate power purchase agreement.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15163133/main.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Emarat awards contract for Dubai airport jet fuel pipeline

    26 November 2025

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Dubai’s Emirates General Petroleum Corporation (Emarat) has awarded a contract for engineering services for a project to build a new jet-fuel supply pipeline to Al-Maktoum International airport in the emirate.

    The contract for end-to-end engineering design services has been won by Bilfinger Middle East, a subsidiary of Germany-headquartered Bilfinger Tebodin.

    The expansion of Al-Maktoum International airport is estimated to be valued at $35bn. The government approved the updated designs and timelines for its largest construction project in April 2024.

    In a statement, the authorities said the plan is for all operations from Dubai International airport to be transferred to Al-Maktoum International within 10 years.

    The statement added that the project will create housing demand for 1 million people around the airport.

    In September last year, MEED exclusively reported that a team comprising Austria’s Coop Himmelb(l)au and Lebanon’s Dar Al-Handasah had been confirmed as the lead masterplanning and design consultants on the expansion of Al-Maktoum airport.

    Construction on the first phase has already begun. In May, MEED exclusively reported that DAEP had awarded a AED1bn ($272m) deal to UAE firm Binladin Contracting Group to construct the second runway at the airport.

    The enabling works on the terminal are also ongoing and are being undertaken by Abu Dhabi-based Tristar E&C.

    Construction works on the project’s first phase are expected to be completed by 2032.

    ALSO READ: Dubai selects Al-Maktoum airport substructure contractor

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15160792/main0620.jpg
    Indrajit Sen
  • Arabian Construction Company wins Trump Tower Jeddah

    26 November 2025

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Abu Dhabi-based contractor Arabian Construction Company has won the main contract to build the Trump Tower Jeddah.

    Saudi Arabia-headquartered real estate developer Dar Global is developing the project in collaboration with the US-based Trump Organisation.

    The 47-floor tower is expected to be developed at an estimated cost of SR2bn ($532m).

    The enabling works have been completed and were undertaken by the local Specialised Italian Foundation Company.

    In August, MEED exclusively reported that Dar Global was preparing to award the main construction contract to build the Trump Tower development in Jeddah.

    The project is the latest addition to Dar Global’s portfolio, following its announcement of two new projects in Riyadh with the Trump Organisation.

    The announcement follows a partnership deal signed by Dar Global in September last year with Geneva-based jeweller Mouawad to develop a residential project in Riyadh.

    The estimated SR880m ($234m) development will offer 200 residential villas north of Riyadh, close to the Expo 2030 site.

    The development is expected to be completed by 2026.

    According to an official statement, Dar Global has $7.5bn-worth of projects under development in six countries: the UAE, Oman, Qatar, the UK, Spain and Saudi Arabia.

    UK analytics firm GlobalData expects the kingdom’s construction industry to record an annual average growth rate of 5.2% in 2025-28, supported by investments in transport, electricity, housing and tourism infrastructure projects and the Saudi gigaprojects programme.

    The industry will also be supported by the government’s aim of increasing homeownership from 62% in 2020 to 70% by 2030, as part of Saudi Vision 2030.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15159884/main.jpeg
    Yasir Iqbal