Saudi Arabia launched 10 privatisation and PPP projects in first half of 2026

Summary

• Riyadh undertook 10 privatisation and public-private partnership projects between January and June 2026, the Finance Ministry said.
• Signed partnership contracts now total 83, with estimated value-for-money of 28.3 billion riyals, or $7.52 billion.
• The push feeds a national target of drawing $64 billion in private capital through privatisation deals by 2030.

The latest

Ten privatisation and public-private partnership projects were undertaken in the first half of 2026, according to the Finance Ministry's pre-budget statement for 2027. They include a PPP structure for Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Qassim and an investment project covering five sports clubs. Total investment in privatisation and PPP projects had reached roughly 180 billion riyals by the end of 2025.

Details

• The projects: The half-year tally includes the Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz International Airport project in Qassim, structured as a public-private partnership, and a separate investment project involving five sports clubs, according to the ministry's pre-budget statement for 2027.
• New contracts: The ministry signed two private-sector contracts in the period: the SABIC Mental Health Hospital project in the healthcare sector, and the Jubail Container Terminal project in transport and logistics. The statement did not disclose the value of either individual contract.
• The running total: Signed partnership contracts have now reached 83, with an estimated value-for-money of 28.3 billion Saudi riyals, or $7.52 billion, the statement said. Alongside them sit 12 asset transfer contracts, a separate instrument from the partnership deals.
• Investment to date: Total investment in privatisation and PPP projects stood at approximately 180 billion riyals by the end of 2025, according to the statement. Private-sector capital investment within that figure exceeded 56.2 billion riyals.
• The 2030 target: The National Privatisation Strategy aims to attract 240 billion riyals, about $64 billion, in private-sector capital investment through privatisation transactions by 2030. That is more than four times the private capital committed so far.
• The strategy: The National Privatisation Strategy was approved in November 2025 to strengthen public-private partnerships, maximise their economic, social and financial impact, and improve the quality of public services delivered to citizens and residents.
• How it runs: The strategy establishes five key programmes intended to enable and advance the privatisation ecosystem, supported by 42 implementation initiatives. The statement did not set out a timeline for rolling out the individual programmes or initiatives.
• Where it appears: The figures were published in the Finance Ministry's pre-budget statement for 2027, the document that sets out fiscal assumptions and spending direction ahead of the formal budget announcement.

Background

Privatisation is one of the delivery mechanisms under Saudi Arabia's broader economic diversification agenda, shifting infrastructure, healthcare, transport and sports assets toward private operators and investors while the state retains ownership or regulatory oversight in many of the structures used.

Between the lines

The sector spread is the signal. Airports, a container terminal, a mental health hospital and five sports clubs are not a single-sector pilot but a test of whether the partnership model travels across unrelated asset classes. With private capital at 56.2 billion riyals against a 240 billion riyal target for 2030, the pace of deal signing matters more than the headline project count.

What's next

The 2027 budget announcement should show how much fiscal space is assigned to partnership structures, and whether the second-half 2026 pipeline matches the first half's 10 projects.

Source: ZAWYA Projects