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Bechtel to Manage Saudi Megaproject for Ma’aden

Bechtel to Oversee Development of New Phosphate Complex and Industrial City 

Bechtel has been awarded the overall program management contract for the King Abdullah project for Waad Al Shamaal City development by Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma’aden). Bechtel, which developed the megaproject’s master plan, will oversee the engineering and construction of the planned city and industrial complex, near Turayf in northern Saudi Arabia. The company will also perform the front-end engineering and design of the planned city.

The 170-square-mile (440-square-kilometer) industrial city will include commercial, housing, and educational facilities. The mining complex will feature seven world-scale phosphate processing plants. Preparatory work on the project is now under way and construction will begin in 2013.

“We have worked in Saudi Arabia for more than 70 years. On every project, we look to maximize the number of local job opportunities available and will use this approach to continue our legacy of delivering quality infrastructure in the Kingdom,” said David Welch, regional president of Bechtel's Europe, Africa, and Middle East region. “We look forward to working with Ma’aden to achieve their vision of a world-class industrial complex.”

This project adds to Bechtel’s portfolio of work with Ma’aden over the last decade, which includes the Ras Al-Khair aluminum smelter. In addition, Bechtel has successfully delivered nearly 5,000 mining and metals and civil infrastructure projects around the world and is currently building Jubail Industrial City, the largest civil infrastructure project in the world.