Industry players are upbeat about the regions railway supply market prospects, noting that the sector will grow about 3% annually in the next four years, as found out by Middle East Rail.
Middle East Rail 2017, taking place on March 7-8 in Dubai, will introduce both 2017 tenders and innovative technologies being implemented to build and operate futuristic networks.
According to Helmut Scholze, partner at Roland Berger: Despite some setbacks and the economic complexities seen in the past year, the rail market is picking up speed in the Middle East and North Africa. We predict further investments in rail systems and this will lead to significant, long-term growth in the rail equipment market. The UAE and Iran will be the key growth markets, while Saudi Arabia will stay moderately flat at its current high volume.
Munir Patel, CEO, XRail Group, agrees: The region is still a very prosperous place as Governments continue to realize the social, environmental and economic benefits of incorporating railway and metro systems into the transport infrastructure. The key is to stay connected to stay ahead. We have now established offices in Dubai, Doha and Riyadh, so we can be close to our clients to support them in their upcoming projects as we see stable growth in the market.
The 15km extension of the Dubai metro to the Expo 2020 site and the Saudi Land Bridge linking Riyadh to Jeddah is progressing well. In Egypt, the modernisation of a metro line and a large order for new metro vehicles is expected in Cairo. For the GCC Railway Project, individual member states are currently assessing the details of continuation of the project as well as domestic alternatives. Oman Rail is now weighing up plans for the development of a domestic heavy-haul line that will transport minerals from Thumrait to Duqm Port. $69bn worth of projects are currently under construction in the GCC region.
Andreas Schwilling, partner and global head of Rail and Mobility at Roland Berger added: Private sector response to suggested PPPs in the region has been cautious and moderate. A clear demonstration on whether transportation projects can be built and operated in a way that generates the returns required by equity investors will define the future of PPPs in the infrastructure sector in the Middle East.
Greenbrier Companies (GBX), one of the largest rolling stock providers, has expanded once again in the market with the acquisition of Astra Rail. Thomas P Jackson, VP of marketing, Greenbrier Companies, said: With the Greenbrier-Astra Rail formation we are keenly focused to support long term growth opportunities in the GCC region. Our entry into Saudi Arabia’s railcar market is a great honor and a great responsibility as we participate with the Kingdom in one of its premier economic development and engineering projects at Wa’ad al Shamal City.