With Saudi Arabia and the UAE dominating the GCC project development sector and construction activity spiking in Kuwait in the last quarter of 2021, the region’s construction market is estimated at $1.6 trillion, new reports have revealed.

According to figures in the BNC Projects Journal, there were more than 21,000 active construction projects in the GCC as Q3 2021, most of which were in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. However, Kuwait emerged as a hotbed of construction activity in Q4 last year, with $9.9 billion worth of new project plans revealed. This made it the best quarter for the country in the last two years, said the BNC report.

Kuwait also saw project awards worth $1.8bn and delivered projects worth $12bn in the quarter. Activities in the last quarter of 2021 led to project announcements increasing around six-fold year-on-year to $11.3bn while their annual value crossed $4bn, a 17% YoY growth.

In the Energy sector, $62.1bn worth of new projects were announced in 2021, which led to the BNC GCC Energy Projects Index expanding 5% YoY. There was also a growth of 37% YoY in energy project awarded, which stood at around three-quarter of a billion during the year. The report added that the growth in the energy sector offset the decline in the urban sector, which has been shown as contracting by the BNC Urban Index.

Avin Gidwani, CEO of Industry Networks, said: “The energy revolution doesn't just cover energy generation, it also covers energy transportation and energy utilisation, making it a movement that permeates almost every domain. Green energy leaders will be tomorrow's leaders across more than just the energy domain.”

Saudi Arabia and the UAE continue to lead project development in the region, with the kingdom topping the project announcement chart with a 43% share in 2021, while the UAE’s share stood at 22%. When it came to project awards and completions, however, the UAE topped the table with around 40% share on both parameters.

"We're calling 2022, 'The Green Year' due to the leadership that the region and particularly the UAE is demonstrating towards achieving a net zero carbon economy. These green initiatives are going to be the primary driver of major projects and development in the decades ahead,” Gidwanu added.