Over 100 Middle East and North Africa (Mena) projects across 18 categories have been selected as National Winners for the 2022 MEED Projects Awards.

The awards, hosted by MEED in association with Mashreq, recognise the best projects completed in the past 12 months in 10 Mena states.  

The winning projects will now be shortlisted for the finals, where they will compete against other National Winners to determine the region’s best overall project in each category. The ultimate winners for each category will be announced at a gala awards reception on 23 November in Dubai.

National winners

Highlighted construction sector National Winners this year include Brookfield Properties’ ICD Brookfield Place in Dubai; the Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Masjed Project in Al-Ain, built by Arabian Construction Company; Address Hotels’ Vida Beach Resort Marassi al-Bahrain; and Taj City – Zone T – Park Residence in Cairo, project managed by Hill International.

Energy sector National Winners include a joint venture of Petrofac-Samsung Engineering; McDermott’s engineering, procurement and construction package one on the Kuwait Clean Fuels Project at the Mina Abdulla refinery; Bahrain’s Al-Dur 1,500MW independent power project construction by Sepco3 Electric Power Construction Company and Acwa Power; and the Nahadah 400/132kV substation built by Larsen & Toubro.

New awards

This year sees the addition of a new category for Engineer of the Year, recognising the achievements of individuals working on projects, five of whom have been selected for the finals. Similarly, there will be new awards for projects with the most social impact and those with the best response to the pandemic. Smaller projects are also recognised, with eight National Winners for Small Project of the Year.

Judging process

Following an extensive submission and judging process, each of the National Winners was selected based on a number of factors such as technological innovation, engineering excellence and commitment to sustainable practices. 

They will now go forward to a further round of rigorous judging. An independent panel of more than 40 judges will gather to review them and select the overall Mena winners in each category, to be announced at the awards ceremony. The event will culminate with the prestigious Project of the Year award, which in past years has included iconic projects such as the Louvre Museum, the Haramain high-speed railway and the Bahr al-Barq wastewater treatment plant in Egypt.

Despite the challenges posed by Covid-19, inflation and increased logistics costs, the high volume of quality projects completed over the past 12 months is a strong indication of the region’s continued progression
Sonia Kerrigan, MEED

“This year is the largest ever for the MEED Project Awards, with a record number of entries and categories, underlining just how resilient the projects market community has been in the face of all the challenges over the past two years,” says Sonia Kerrigan, group commercial director, MEED. “The high volume of world-class projects built on time and to budget is further evidence of the region’s dynamism and reputation as a leading centre of construction innovation and excellence. 

“The National Winners are a testament to the infrastructure community’s resilience, commitment to excellence and innovation. We are proud and delighted to announce more than 100 projects have claimed national honours in 18 categories and representing countries from across the Mena region.

“Despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, inflation and increased logistics costs, the high volume of quality projects completed over the past 12 months is a strong indication of the region’s continued progression. These companies have reaffirmed why they are considered the bedrock of the region’s economy. Congratulations to all our national winners.”

It is extremely encouraging to see the resilience of the projects industry, which is the backbone of our economy even through challenging times
Arun Mathur, Mashreq Bank 

Each of these projects will now be reviewed against its Mena rivals for the regional honours to determine the final winners of the 2022 MEED Projects Awards in association with Mashreq. The gala awards reception on 23 November will be held at Dubai's Ritz Carlton JBR.

The complete list of the 2022 MEED Projects Awards National Winners and finalists is available on the awards website. 

Commenting on the award winners this year, Arun Mathur, Mashreq Bank's executive vice president and global head of contracting finance, added: “Mashreq is proud to extend its support to the MEED Projects Awards as a showcase of the region’s continued growth and commitment to excellence. It is extremely encouraging to see the resilience of the projects industry, which is the backbone of our economy even through challenging times.”