Umm Al Qura reissues contracts for vast Mecca project

Umm Al Qura for Development and Construction Company has reissued contracts worth billions of dollars to commence work on seven hotel towers and two shopping centres in the Masar project along Mecca’s western border.

The superstructure development contracts valued at SAR4.1 billion ($1.1 billion) were awarded on Thursday to two local contractors, the company said in a statement to the Saudi bourse.

In November, the developer terminated the main contractor for unspecified material breaches.  

The SAR100 billion Masar project is one of the largest redevelopment projects in the region, stretching more than 3.5km along Mecca’s western border. It will comprise 205 investment plots covering a total area of 64 hectares and a total gross floor area of 5.7 million square metres.  

The project will have 18,000 serviced apartments, 23,000 hotel rooms, 9,000 residential units and a retail leasable area of 216,000 sq m.

Package A was awarded to Mounes Mohammed Elshayeb and Partners for Civil Construction Company for SAR3.2 billion, comprising four hospitality towers and two commercial centres on six plots of land in zone 1 of Masar Destination. 

BEC Arabia Contracting Company won package B, worth SAR899 million. It consists of three hospitality towers being developed on two plots of land in zone 3 of the project.  

The contracts have to be completed within 30 months, the statement said. 

In November, the Public Investment Fund raised nearly SAR950 million from the sale of 3.3 percent of its stake in Umm Al Qura through an accelerated bookbuild offering. The sovereign wealth fund continues to hold 16.3 percent in the developer.

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Masar shares closed 1.6 percent lower at SAR17.95 on Thursday. The developer’s share price is up nearly 77 percent since its March 2025 listing.

In December, Saudi Arabia launched a portal to record all real estate ownership transactions involving non-Saudis who will be able to purchase property in all of the kingdom’s cities from January 22.

AGBI reported earlier that Saudi Arabia will grant “lifetime” residency to foreigners who cross a certain threshold when purchasing property.