Saudi giga project NEOM announced on Monday that it has awarded major drill and blast tunnelling contracts to support the development of transportation and utility infrastructure in the high-tech hub located in the Kingdom’s northwest region.

The contracts to develop what is billed as one of the largest transportation and utility infrastructure projects in the world, separated by lower and upper geographies, was split between two consortiums, NEOM said in a press statement.

The first contract was awarded to a joint venture of FCC Construction, China State Construction Engineering Corporation and Shibh Al-Jazira Contracting Company (FCC/CSCEC/SAJCO JV), and the second to Samsung C&T Corporation, Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co and Saudi Archirodon Company (SHA JV), the statement said.

The tunnels, more than 28 kilometres long, will provide separate passages for high-speed and freight rail services, to provide for safer, faster and easier movement of people and goods.

The rock excavated as part of tunneling project would be processed for subsequent reuse within the permanent concrete lining of the tunnels and other projects within NEOM to ensure minimal impact to natural landscapes.

The contract values weren’t shared.

Nadhmi Al-Nasr, CEO of NEOM, said the contract mark another significant milestone for the giga-project.

“The sheer scope and scale of the tunneling work to be undertaken highlights the complexity and ambition of the project,” he said.

In June 2022, a Zawya report said that NEOM would feature the world’s largest buildings from the Red Sea coast into the desert.

Earlier, in May 2022, Zawya reported that the Saudi government is likely to add to its $500 billion NEOM commitment.

Construction has already started on the first phase of a $5-billion green hydrogen plant in NEOM, which aims to transform Saudi into a major exporter of the green fuel.

(Writing by Anoop Menon; Editing by Bhaskar Raj)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)