Saudi's time has come

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Major projects have been started, are underway and, in the case of the record-breaking, Princess Nora University, nearing completion that were barely off the drawing board when the PMV Saudi shoe last opened its doors in Jeddah in 2009.

The Kingdom has taken the title off the UAE as the undisputed home of construction in the GCC with the value of infrastructure and construction contracts in the current 2009-2012 period expected to exceed $138 billion. And there is more to come.

Whether it’s the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, or the massive development of Jubail Industrial City, an entire city out of the desert, if your company doesn’t have a Saudi project strategy then it may not be worth talking about. Because for the next few years at least: the Kingdon of Saudi Arabia is where it’s at.

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The Saudi Arabia constuction story began as a derivative of the wealth that was created by the oil and gas sector, however, while demand for construction equipment remains steady in that sector, it is other new factors that are affecting demand for machinery and equipment.

The blue-ribbon projects have co-incided with massive investment into infrastructure and this is set to continue. There are roads and railways to build and the Saudi Arabian government is investing $400 billion on infrastructure over the next five years as the entire country’s infrastructure is upgraded.

Its booming economy is also demanding that investment is made into the Kingdom’s energy supply. The oil may be fuelling the economy but Saudi Arabia’s national grid is ill-equipped to handle the country’s forecasted electricity demands.

Nuclear energy plant construction has been identified as a crucial component for the kingdom as it tries to offset its growing population, rising energy demands while lessoning its reliance on its reserves of black gold.

Housing is also of paramount importance to the country’s development. Over 70% of the population are below the age of 30 and six mega economic cities are under development to provide long term jobs and housing. In fact it is predicted that there will be 50% increase in demand for residential housing in the next three years alone.

Thankfully, the dearth of housing is finally being addressed, encouraging housing construction in the Kingdom which could be boosted even further should reforms to home ownership be carried through.

It is a mouth-watering prospect that a boom in home ownership could really turn the heat up on an economy that is already simmering well with oil prices once again buoyant.