The desert wind blows continuously throughout the year. Along the west coast of the Persian Gulf from north to south, a new line that only exists on the blueprint is waiting to land - it will pass through the saline alkali land and industrial corridor in eastern Saudi Arabia, connecting ports, border ports, and neighboring countries' railway networks into one line. At present, it is not the machinery for laying the tracks that determines whether this line can proceed, but a batch of design drawings placed on the desk of the Saudi Railway Company: who will review and how to review, which has become the most critical gate before the start of construction.

The total length of the Gulf Railway is about 2186 kilometers, connecting the six Gulf countries, with the Saudi section of about 672 kilometers, making it the heaviest section of the entire line.

The deadline for bidding has been postponed to November

Saudi Railways has postponed the bidding deadline for design review and consultation from the original October 18th to November 1st, while the bidding documents were released as early as September 9th. The delay sends a signal that the complexity of the preliminary work exceeds expectations.

The winning bidder is not responsible for the design work and is only responsible for reviewing the design results. Its tasks include preparing design management and review plans, covering management architecture, cross disciplinary coordination, and phased approval nodes; Provide a formal review and audit report in accordance with SAR requirements and international standards. In addition, the winning bidder shall be responsible for stakeholder communication and interface management, and supervise the design consulting firm to promote land acquisition according to its land acquisition plan.

Design bidding with five competitors

Parallel to the review package is the bidding for the project's main design. According to reports, the bid has received bids from five companies or consortia on July 14th, with members mostly from the UK, Germany, France, Spain, and Lebanon. No Chinese enterprises have been seen among them, and the winning bidder has not yet been determined.

The design work is expected to take 16 months: 4 months for conceptual design, 6 months for preliminary design, 6 months for construction drawing design, with an additional 4-week buffer period for each stage. The winning bidder shall review, update and improve the existing design draft.

The technical standards for the Saudi section have been clearly defined: single track, non electrified railway, operating in both passenger and freight lines, with a maximum axle load of 32.4 tons, and equipped with sidings to meet the needs of two-way traffic; Passenger trains are designed to have a speed of 220 kilometers per hour, while freight trains are designed to have a speed of 80 to 120 kilometers per hour. This section corresponds to four sections, connecting Saudi Arabia's existing railway network with Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, with lengths of approximately 141 kilometers, 200 kilometers, 151 kilometers, and 21 kilometers, respectively.

Speed up the connectivity of the six countries

The Gulf Railway is an important part of Gulf countries' efforts to promote infrastructure integration. Once the entire line is connected, cross-border passenger and freight transportation will no longer heavily rely on roads and sea freight, and regional logistics costs and supply chain resilience are expected to improve. The Saudi section is not only a geographical hub, but also a technical challenge: the four country interface, mixed passenger and freight lines, and land acquisition coordination. Any mistake in one link will slow down the overall pace.keywords:Engineering infrastructure

This is also the reason why the design review is set up separately - it is equivalent to the last quality gate before construction begins. As the deadline for bidding approaches on November 1st and the reviewing party is confirmed, the design of the Saudi section will enter the stage of updating and improvement, and the starting point will also be clear. From blueprints to railway tracks, this 672 kilometer line is gradually approaching reality.Editor/Yang Meiling