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US firms win delivery partner roles for Riyadh airport

13 March 2025

 

King Salman International Airport Development Company (KSIADC) has appointed delivery partners for Riyadh’s King Salman International airport (KSIA) project.

US-based Bechtel has been selected as the delivery partner for the terminals, and Parsons, also of the US, has been chosen as the delivery partner for two packages. One covers the airside infrastructure, including the runways, taxiways, air traffic control towers, fuel farms and fire stations. The other involves the infrastructure that will connect the airport to the rest of the city, including utilities and roads.

Delivery partner roles typically involve assisting the project client with developing a project. This includes project management, design management, cost consulting and procurement advice. Delivery partners have been appointed for some of Saudi Arabia’s largest projects. For example, a team of Canada’s AtkinsRealis, Jacobs and Parsons, both US-based, is working as the delivery partner for The Line at Neom.

UK-based architect Foster + Partners won the competition to design the masterplan for KSIA in 2023. Jacobs is doing the engineering work for the project.

Construction progress

Progress is also being made on construction packages. KSIADC has tendered a design-and-build contract to develop the third runway at KSIA. The closing date for submitting bids is 24 March.

The third and fourth runways will add to the two existing runways at Riyadh’s King Khalid International airport (KKIA), which will eventually become part of KSIA.

If the project is completed on time in 2030, KSIA will become the largest airport in the world in terms of passenger capacity.

Project goals

The airport aims to accommodate up to 120 million passengers by 2030 and 185 million by 2050. For cargo, the goal is to process 3.5 million tonnes a year by 2050.

It will cover an area of about 57 square kilometres (sq km), allowing for six parallel runways, and will include the existing terminals at KKIA.

The project will also include 12 sq km of airport support facilities, residential and recreational facilities, retail outlets and other logistics real estate.

Aviation strategy

Saudi Arabia plans to invest $100bn in its aviation sector. Riyadh’s Saudi Aviation Strategy, announced by the General Authority of Civil Aviation (Gaca), envisages tripling Saudi Arabia’s annual passenger traffic to 330 million travellers by 2030.

It also aims to increase air cargo traffic to 4.5 million tonnes and raise the country’s total air connections to more than 250 destinations. 

MEED’s April 2025 report on Saudi Arabia includes:

> UPSTREAM: Saudi oil and gas spending to surpass 2024 level
> DOWNSTREAM: Aramco’s recalibrated chemical goals reflect realism
> POWER: Saudi power sector enters busiest year
> WATER: Saudi water contracts set another annual record
> CONSTRUCTION: Reprioritisation underpins Saudi construction
> TRANSPORT: Riyadh pushes ahead with infrastructure development
> BANKING: Saudi banks work to keep pace with credit expansion

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Colin Foreman

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