Midad Energy goes big on Algerian gas

Midad Energy is putting USD 3 bn into Algerian gas. Its North Africa arm has earmarked about USD 3 bn for the first phase of a gas project in Algeria’s southern Illizi region, part of a USD 5.4 bn total, with first output expected by end-2028, COO Mourad Belik said in an energy conference in Algeria.

The plan now awaits sign-off from Algeria’s hydrocarbon agency. Once it clears, Midad has two years to start production. Phase one targets 8 mn cbm / day of gas, rising to 11.3 mn, under the production-sharing contract it signed with Sonatrach last October. A second phase, developing the project's western part, would lift output to 20 mn cbm / day.

Al Kathiri crosses the border

Al Kathiri lands its first job abroad. The Saudi contractor’s wholly owned Msandh Al-Emdad secured an award letter from Egypt’s Talaat Moustafa Group to build 160 villas in the Jood project at Oman’s Sultan Haitham City, worth SAR 110 mn, it said in a Tadawul disclosure. The two-year contract, the company’s first outside the Kingdom, is due to be signed on 5 November, the value still subject to a value-engineering review.

More with Syria

The Saudi-Syrian Business Council is setting up an institutional framework to smooth company entry, with about three channels still taking shape, Asharq Al Awsat reports. Two are named so far: A joint team with the Syrian Investment Authority working on land and sea logistics corridors, and a Federation of Saudi Chambers link to Syria’s sovereign fund. The announcement is on the heels of Syrian President Ahmad Al Sharaa’s meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh.

The momentum is already showing in new projects, including Tharaa's USD 1 bn Sham View development and a Boudl hotel in Damascus.

REMEMBER- Saudi-Syrian economic ties have accelerated since a Saudi delegation led by former Investment Minister Khalid Al Falih visited Damascus last year. The visit resulted in 47 agreements across 11 sectors, with investments exceeding USD 6.4 bn. Agreements since then have spanned airports, telecoms, desalination, real estate, and roads, including the SAR 7.5 bn Aleppo airport project, a SAR 3 bn STC telecoms project, USD 2 bn in Abyat developments, and a USD 300 mn roads contract.

Driverless delivery hits the road

The Transport General Authority has launched Nero, a self-driving delivery vehicle, with Ninja, its Deputy for Transport Enablement said on X. Built for last-mile deliveries, Nero runs autonomously within a defined area.

Nero lands amid a fast-moving autonomous-transport push. The Interior Ministry in June updated the Kingdom's traffic rules for self-driving vehicles, making owners, companies included, legally liable for their AVs' violations and accidents. Other driverless projects are further along: WeRide and Uber run a geofenced robotaxi pilot in Riyadh, and the TGA already operates its own self-driving taxi service. Humain and Nvidia, meanwhile, are working to put Level 4 vehicles, which drive themselves within mapped areas, on roads across the Kingdom.

Qassim Cement buys A-Mix

Qassim Cement has been cleared by the General Authority for Competition to concrete producer A-Mix for SAR 65 mn, according to a Tadawul disclosure. It will pay A-Mix’s owners in three installments, drawing on its existing Sharia-compliant credit facilities with commercial banks.

Qassim isn’t short on liquidity: It recently secured a SAR 400 mn financing agreement from the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF), alongside other facilities, to launch new production lines and expand its operations.