Construction projects worth $3.3bn (SAR12.4bn) were awarded in Saudi Arabia in July 2019, while Oman announced new projects worth $5bn (OMR1.5bn) during the month, according to the BNC Projects Journal: The Camel Economy, which added that the GCC’s construction projects’ market was valued at $2.52tn with 27,000 active projects as of July 2019.

According to The Camel Economy report, the GCC’s constructionmarket expanded by 6% year-on-year in July 2019, led by Oman and Saudi Arabia with growth rates of 16% and 13% respectively.

      A statement issued by BNC added that projects worth $13.8bn were announced in the GCC during July 2019, marking 140% month-on-month growth in the region.

      The energy sector registered the highest value of new construction projects in the GCC in July 2019, reaching $9.2bn during the month.

Additionally, the GCC’s energy construction projects – comprising oil and gas, and utilities schemes – saw contract awards worth $3.7bn in July 2019, with completions during the month accounting for 90% of the construction project completions recorded in Q2 2019.

The value of urban construction contract awards tripled in July compared to June 2019’s $1bn, driven largely by the UAE, which contributed to 65% of the total amount.

Project completions worth $13.1bn were noted in July 2019 – marking month-on-month growth of 6% – led by the energy and urban construction sectors.

BNC’s statement added that while the project completion rate noted month-on-month growth in July 2019, the figure was 20% lower than the monthly average for 2019.

In the UAE, projects worth $7bn (AED25.7bn) were completed during July 2019, with the figure standing at $3.7bn (SAR13.8bn) in Saudi Arabia.
Commenting on the findings, chief executive officer of Industry Networks – the company behind BNC – Avin Gidwani, said: “The GCC’s project market fared surprisingly well in July, considering the annual summer slowdown.

“We expect activity to ramp up significantly in the coming months.”