The Oil Drum

Saudi Arabia Rail Plans

The Saudi Railway Organization is prepared for a radical change in its services after a 50- year absence of new railway construction in the country. The SRO has initiated a large expansion of the rail network all over the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is planned to upgrade and significantly expand the existing railway network by implementing separate, but interconnected, new railway projects.

Saudi Arabia is bound for ambitious and mega plans for its railroad network:

The North-South Railway Project

This will link Riyadh-Buraydah-Hail-Qurayyat as well as the mines at Al Jalamid and Az Zabirah to Ras AzZawr on the Arabian Gulf for a total distance of 2,400 km. The estimated cost of the project is $ 3 to 4 billion, and the client is the Public Investment Fund (PIF). This line is primarily intended to transport bauxite and phosphate ores from the north and northeast of Saudi Arabia to processing facilities on the Arabian Gulf coast. The project will also provide passenger and general freight services to various towns and cities in the region.

Saudi Landbridge Project

This project includes the construction of an overland bridge linking Dammam and Jeddah through the industrial cities of Jubail and Riyadh. This line will link the Red Sea with the Arabian Gulf. The overland bridge is the cornerstone of the Railway Expansion Program, to be implemented on the basis of a Build Operate Transfer (BOT) concession. A consortium comprising UBS Investment Bank, The National Commercial Bank and SNCF International has been selected by Saudi Railways Organization ("SRO") to provide Financial and Technical Advisory Services for the project.

Makkah-Madinah Rail Link Project (MMRL)

The purpose of the MMRL project is to cater to the requirements of passengers, predominantly religious pilgrims and commuters wishing to travel between Makkah, Jeddah and Madinah. The project will consist of a high-speed line linking the three cities with six new stations. The Saudi Government will grant concessions to the private sector for the construction and operation of the MMRL via a Design, Build, Operate and Transfer ("DBOT") contract. The estimated cost of the project is $4 billion.

Riyadh Metro

The project is still in the planning phase and will entail investments of up to $2 billion. The Supreme Commission for the Development of Riyadh City (ARD) proposed this project to reduce traffic congestion in the capital and handles the future public transportation needs of the city. The proposed metro system will include two primary routes: the first route will link Northern and the Southern parts of the city, while the second route will link the East of the capital with the West.

Madinah Monorail Project

Plans have been set to establish an elevated electric train project in Medina to facilitate mass transit of pilgrims and visitors between the Prophet’s Mosque, the Quba Mosque and the Shuhada area. The project is designed to transport 20,000 passengers an hour.

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They signed a $1.9 billion contract to start work on a 1,000+ mile North-South rail line on April 4, 2007. This will carry 2 million pax/year plus phosphate & bauxite (Saudi is developing mineral resources other than oil).

This should have a small, but positive, impact on Export Land domestic oil consumption.

Venezuala is also investing heavily in new rail projects.

Do they know something the US does not ?

Best Hopes,

Alan