en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Asir-Jazan Expressway project in Saudi Arabia has recently officially awarded the contract to a Chinese-led construction consortium, with a total investment of $5 billion. This 130-kilometer expressway corridor will connect Abha, the capital of Asir Province, with Jazan Province, reducing travel time between the two locations from three hours to approximately one and a half hours.
The expressway project is led by Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Transport and Logistic Services, with joint supervision by the Roads General Authority, the National Center for Privatization & PPP, and the Asir Development Authority. Abdul Qader Osman Amir, Executive Vice President of Technical Affairs at the Asir Development Authority, told Saudi media that the expressway includes approximately 26 bridges and tunnels, representing a major engineering undertaking. Under the Build-Operate-Transfer model, the project's life-cycle cost could reach 39 billion Saudi Riyals, equivalent to $10.4 billion.
The expressway project adopts a 30-year Design-Build-Finance-Operate-Maintain model, transferring operational responsibilities to the private sector while maintaining government oversight. After the project launched its tendering process in 2024, a total of 69 companies submitted expressions of interest, including 37 international firms. In August 2025, five major consortia passed pre-qualification, with the Chinese-led consortium ultimately securing the contract.
The expressway features three lanes in each direction, with 6 interchanges, 57 bridges (totaling 18 kilometers in length), and 11 tunnels (totaling 9.2 kilometers in length) along the entire route. The project extends from Al Farah in the Asir region to the Red Sea coast in the Jazan region.
The expressway project is synergized with the "Greater Abha" initiative, integrating Abha, Khamis Mushait, and Majardah into a unified economic zone, serving nearly half of the Asir region's population concentrated in these urban corridors. Furthermore, the plan includes connecting the Bisha area to the national railway network to achieve multimodal transport integration.
Due to complex terrain conditions, construction activities for this expressway will prioritize safety standards. The project is expected to support job creation and local supply chain participation, while enabling technology transfer in tunnel and bridge engineering.
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