Bahrain Awards $2.13bn in Projects

Bahrain has more than $33 billion worth of projects waiting to be awarded, even as new figures showed contract awards across the Gulf fell sharply in the second quarter after the Iranian war hit business activity across the region.

Projects worth about $2.13 billion were awarded in Bahrain during the three months to June, according to Kamco Invest, leaving a pipeline of schemes at the bidding stage or awaiting award valued at roughly 15 times that amount.

Across the GCC, the value of contracts awarded fell by 25.4pc from the previous quarter to $59.4 billion, down from $79.6 billion in the first three months of 2026.

Saudi Arabia was the only Gulf state to record quarterly growth, with contract awards rising by 160.4pc to $30 billion. Every other market recorded a decline.

Qatar saw the sharpest fall. Contract awards dropped to $931 million during the quarter from $9.3 billion in the opening three months of the year.

Oil was the only sector to post quarterly growth across the Gulf. Awards climbed by 269pc to $13.7 billion, while every other sector recorded lower totals.

Kamco Invest said the quarterly fall stemmed mainly from the economic effects of the Iranian war, which slowed project activity across the region.

The annual picture was stronger. GCC contract awards rose by 30pc from $45.7 billion in the second quarter of 2025 to $59.4 billion in the same period this year.

Saudi Arabia and Oman led that rise. Saudi awards climbed by 53.6pc to $30 billion, while Oman recorded the fastest annual increase, with awards jumping to $5.9 billion from $1.3 billion a year earlier.

Kuwait’s awards rose by 49.1pc to $2 billion. The UAE recorded a 5.4pc annual fall to $20.5 billion, while Qatar’s total dropped by 40.8pc to $931 million. Bahrain also recorded a year-on-year decline, although the report did not give a separate value.

Figures compiled by MEED showed the downturn spread beyond the Gulf. Monthly contract awards across the Middle East and North Africa fell from $35.5 billion in February to $19.2 billion in March, before easing further to $16.3 billion in April and $16.8 billion in May after the outbreak of the war.

Oil projects drove the annual rise in Gulf awards, with contracts worth $13.7 billion compared with just $986 million a year earlier.

Construction remained the biggest market, with awards rising by 27.6pc to $21.9 billion.

MEED estimates the Gulf’s future project market at $2.05 trillion. Saudi Arabia accounts for more than half of that total, with the UAE holding a 26.1pc share. Construction represents the largest slice of the pipeline at 39.5pc, followed by transport at 16.3pc and power at 15.6pc.