Construction Investcorp buys 50% of Corsair’s $5bn infrastructure business Bahrain-based alternative investment firm Investcorp has acquired a 50 percent stake in the $4.8 billion infrastructure business of New York-based investment firm Corsair Capital. The transaction was completed by establishing Investcorp Corsair Infrastructure Partners (Investcorp Corsair), a new entity jointly owned by the two companies, the Manama-headquartered company said in a statement. The new entity […] December 12, 2023
Construction Zamil wins $153m deal to build Saudi defence complex A Dammam construction company has won a SAR575 million ($153 million) contract to build a defence manufacturing complex in Al Kharj, central Saudi Arabia. Zamil Steel Construction Company agreed the deal with Saudi Arabian Military Industries (Sami), a Public Investment Fund company set up to lead the development of the kingdom’s defence industry. The Al […] December 11, 2023
Analysis Construction Locals bemused by Jeddah’s planned transformation Amid a vast area of empty land in north Jeddah’s Obhur district, a lone unfinished tower stands out on the horizon with motionless yellow cranes around its edges – a stalled sign of the transformation of Saudi Arabia’s second city. Now work on the tower – possibly the tallest in the world upon completion – […] December 11, 2023
Sustainability Turning trash into tokens: blockchain’s answer to waste Trash, garbage, detritus. Whatever you call it, the waste management industry around the world faces a huge challenge as it must handle a substantial and growing volume of rubbish. In 2020, according to the World Bank, the world generated 2.24 billion tonnes of solid waste, amounting to a footprint of 0.79 kg per person per […] December 11, 2023
Construction Contractors upbeat despite Dubai real estate warning The mood was decidedly upbeat at the Big 5 construction conference in Dubai this week, despite recent warnings that the emirate’s real estate sector will slacken next year. Dubai residential property prices rose nearly 17 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2023, the fastest pace in nearly a decade. But a senior S&P Global […] December 8, 2023
Analysis Construction Project overruns remain but payment issues improving Delays in construction project timelines and payments remain a concern in the Gulf. However, things seem to be on the up on the payment side at least, multiple industry professionals said during the Big 5 Global conference in Dubai this week. The larger Middle East region suffers from some of the worst project overruns in […] December 7, 2023
Opinion Real Estate Big squeeze: Dubai’s office market reaches new peak The emirate is witnessing a ‘first come, first served’ leasing mentality December 7, 2023
Logistics Saudi port operator to develop Bangladesh terminal Saudi company Red Sea Gateway Terminal International Limited (RSGTI) has signed a 22-year concession to develop a container terminal at Bangladesh’s primary port in a deal worth $170 million. RSGTI, a subsidiary of the Sustained Infrastructure Holding Company (Sisco), signed the deal with the Chittagong Port Authority to develop Patenga Container Terminal. In a filing […] December 7, 2023
Analysis Giga-projects Big 5 builders seek answers to Saudi’s $1.5trn question Saudi Arabia’s mammoth pipeline of giga-projects was the focus of the Big 5 Global conference in Dubai this week, as the region’s main construction players discussed how to juggle fast-approaching 2030 deadlines with the kingdom’s push for sustainable development. Saudi Arabia has signed off on $78 billion of construction projects so far this year, up […] December 7, 2023
Construction US Green Building Council to launch new ratings system The US Green Building Council is launching a new ratings system to measure structures against tough sustainability targets. It is the first time in 10 years that the organisation has updated its policy, with the industry largely relying on the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (Leed) green building system. According to the US Green […] December 6, 2023
Video length: 06:23 EXCLUSIVE Finance Mashreq will ‘follow science’ for fossil fuel fund phase-out The UAE’s Mashreq Bank will “follow the science” when it comes to phasing out funding for fossil fuel companies, according to a senior executive. Mashreq is one of the top contributors to the UAE Banks Federation’s AED1 trillion ($272 billion) pledge to boost their green financing. The bank has committed to facilitating AED110 billion in […] December 6, 2023
Analysis Markets Real estate trusts struggle despite strong Dubai market Dubai’s resurgent property market has delivered riches to property owners and shareholders of leading developers like Emaar Properties, but investors in two listed Dubai real estate investment trusts – Emirates REIT and ENBD REIT – are nursing sustained losses. Both trusts are listed on Nasdaq Dubai. The emirate’s international bourse launched in 2005 with the […] December 6, 2023
Construction Concrete institute launching low carbon building code The American Concrete Institute is unveiling what it claims is the first-ever low carbon building code at the Cop28 climate conference. Building codes are a set of rules that standardise the construction process. They have historically focused on safety and serviceability, but must now address sustainability needs, Antonio Nanni, a professor at the University of […] December 5, 2023
Infrastructure Gulf telcos sign deal to create $2bn tower company Telecom operators Ooredoo and Zain Group on Tuesday said agreements have been signed to create the largest tower company in the Middle East and North Africa. The cash and share deal, which also involves Dubai-based Tasc Towers Holding, will establish a company comprising 30,000 telecom towers in Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Iraq, Algeria and Tunisia, with […] December 5, 2023
SPECIAL REPORT Construction Qatar and Saudi Arabia poles apart on construction growth Qatar and Saudi Arabia may share an 87km border, but the performances of their construction markets are poles apart. While activity in Saudi Arabia reaches record levels, buoyed by work on giga-projects such as Neom and Diriyah, work in Qatar has dried up after the completion of contracts signed before the 2022 Fifa World Cup. […] December 5, 2023
SPECIAL REPORT Real Estate Turkish housing crisis persists despite construction surge Activity in the Turkish construction industry is picking up pace, fuelled by the need to rebuild after the February earthquakes — but economic woes mean the road could be long, experts tell AGBI. Even before the February earthquakes, which killed 50,000 people, injured 100,000 more, and made 3 million homeless overnight, the country of 83 […] December 5, 2023
SPECIAL REPORT Giga-projects Giga-projects gobble up building supplies and talent Saudi Arabia’s enormous building programme is luring workers from other GCC countries and placing a strain on the supply of raw materials, construction executives have warned. Builders in the UAE in particular are concerned about the resources demanded by the Saudi market, which posted record growth in construction activity during the third quarter. The latest […] December 5, 2023
SPECIAL REPORT Construction How Mena is moving to sustainable construction The year is 2065 and humans are living in space, in villas of celestial materials mined from asteroids and equipped with infinity pools. Far-fetched? Perhaps, but this model was one of dozens featured last month in an exhibition on the past, present and future of sustainable design in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena). […] December 5, 2023
SPECIAL REPORT Infrastructure After stops and starts, GCC rail is back on 2030 timetable In the same week that Dubai announced a 30km extension of its metro network, Kuwait revealed that its $20 billion four-line metro project is to be cancelled. If anything sums up the difficulties associated with connecting the GCC countries by rail, then it is this. Kuwait’s metro hit the buffers as a result of “significant […] December 5, 2023
Construction Saudi cement maker Al Jouf plans to sue over $36m loss A Saudi cement producer is planning to sue three of its former board members for their role in an investment that resulted in a SAR136 million ($36.3 million) loss. Al Jouf Cement Company said in a filing to the Saudi Stock Exchange it was seeking authorisation from its general assembly for the liability lawsuit, which […] December 5, 2023
Construction UAE’s Aldar buys British developer for $291m Abu Dhabi-listed Aldar Properties has acquired London-based developer London Square in a deal worth AED1.07 billion ($291.4 million). The transaction marks Aldar’s first acquisition outside the Mena region. The Abu Dhabi developer plans to leverage its expertise and balance sheet to support London Square’s land acquisition strategy to develop larger prime central London sites. Additionally, […] December 1, 2023
Tourism Neom’s Siranna promotes Saudi eco-friendly tourism Saudi Arabia’s giga-project Neom has unveiled its latest eco-friendly tourism destination on the coast of the Gulf of Aqaba. Siranna, located in northwest Saudi Arabia, will be home to a 65-key hotel and 35 “exclusive” residences. The architecture of the “ultra-luxurious” destination comprises hexagonal pillars that will “blend into the adjoining mountain and wadi”, Neom […] November 30, 2023
