Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (Gaca) expects to tender the contract for the construction of a new airport before the end of the year.

The new airport, located in Qunfudah on the southwestern border of Mecca along the Red Sea coast, is expected to be completed in 2020.

The scheme will utilise a conventional engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) procurement method rather than a public-private partnership (PPP), according to a source familiar with the project.

Another airport is being planned in Jubail. MEED understands the Netherlands’ KPMG is conducting a feasibility study for the project.

It is not clear if the airport in Jubail will be procured using a PPP model, similar to the contracts awarded earlier this year for the airports in Taif, Yanbu, Hail and Al-Qassim.

Gaca recently moved the timeline for the privatisation of all airports in the kingdom from 2020 to the end of 2017.

According to data from regional projects tracker MEED Projects, about half a dozen domestic airports are undergoing renovation, while renovation packages for about 10 others are under study or design.

Saudi Arabia currently has four international airports and 23 domestic and regional airports, inclusive of the airports in Taif, Yanbu, Hail and Al-Qassim.

This number will increase to five international airports and 24 domestic and regional airports once work on Taif is completed and it is converted into an international airport and the new airports in Jubail and Qunfudhah are completed.