Turkish contractors eyeing deals in Saudi market

ISTANBUL

Turkish contractors held meetings with Saudi government officials and representatives of private companies during the Türkiye-Saudi Arabia Construction Forum in Istanbul.

They discussed with their Saudi counterparts the highway, waste management and recycling projects Saudi Arabia plans to implement.

Attendees also included Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail, Saudi Arabia’s municipal, rural affairs and housing minister; Mustafa Tuzcu, Turkish deputy trade minister; Zakria Al-Abdulqadir, board chairman of the Saudi Contractors Authority (SCA); and Erdal Eren, president of the Turkish Contractors’ Association (TMB).

Representatives from 35 Turkish construction companies held bilateral talks with their counterparts from 23 Saudi firms at the sidelines of the event.

“Economic relations between Türkiye and Saudi Arabia continue to develop thanks to the will of the leaders of both countries and the work of the authorities,” Al-Hogail said.

Saudi companies joined the Saudi delegation to strengthen the trade ties between the two countries, the Saudi minister noted.

“The two countries have an interest in bilateral investment. I think we need to continue to work together, and I encourage companies to continue this dialogue,” he said.

For his part, Tuzcu said that strengthening trade and economic cooperation with Saudi Arabia is important for Türkiye.

“Trade [between the two countries] has been on the rise, not only in the construction sector but also in other industries over the past one and a half years,” Tuzcu added.

Turkish contractors undertook 16 projects worth around $3 billion in Saudi Arabia last year, which corresponded to 10.4 percent of all projects Turkish companies carried out abroad in 2023.

From 1972 to June 2023, Turkish companies assumed a total of $28.2 billion worth of projects in Saudi Arabia.