World’s tallest tower in Jeddah: 14 firms in running to complete the project

The Jeddah Economic Company (JEC), which is tasked with the construction of the one-kilometer Jeddah Tower, has recommenced its efforts and has proposed potential contractors for the project. JEC is a consortium established by Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who is the grandson of Abdulaziz al-Saud, the first king of Saudi Arabia. It is mentioned that the Jeddah Tower is slated to surpass the Burj Khalifa by more than 172m. The project's initial phase, which includes the main tower, covers an expansive area of 150 hectares.

In 2014, his Kingdom Holding Company united a group of investors with the ambitious goal of constructing a tower that will exceed the height of one kilometer. Unfortunately, progress was halted in January 2018 when the tower was approximately one-third complete, primarily due to labor issues. The project is now in full swing, according to a source closely associated with the project.

Kingdom Holding Company has officially extended invitations to contractors to submit bids for a contract aiming to complete the project by the year's end. Five local companies, namely Almabani, Bawani, El-Seif Engineering, Nesma & Partners, and Saudi Freyssinet, are included as potential contractors. Moreover, three Chinese contractors, namely China Harbour, China State Construction Engineering Corporation, and PowerChina, are also contenders. The European representation consists of Skanska from Sweden and Strabag from Austria, while South Korea is represented by Hyundai Engineering Construction and Samsung C+T, renowned for building the 828-meter Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Consolidated Contractors from Lebanon and Mohammed Abdulmohsin al-Kharafi of Kuwait are also reportedly in this running.

The contractors have been granted a three-month period to establish partnerships and prepare their proposals. It is expected that each team will comprise at least one local and one international firm. The tower's architectural design was crafted by the renowned US architect Adrian Smith, who is also credited with designing the Burj Khalifa. The architectural firm Adrian Smith & Gordon Gill remains involved in the project, as does the Lebanese consulting engineering firm Dar al-Handasah. Noteworthy shareholders in the JEC include Kingdom Holding Company (40%), Bakhsh Group (40%), and Sharbatly Group (20%).