A consortium comprising Italferr, a subsidiary of Italian state railway FSI, the Spanish company Sener and Hill International has been selected for a project management contract for the Saudi Landbridge project by the Saudi Railway Company (SAR). With the confirmation of the project management contract, SAR is expected to start construction of the project, which includes a new 950 km railway line between Riyadh and Jeddah, in early 2024. The total cost and financing structure of the €6.5 billion (US$7 billion) project is almost finalised. In 2018, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to realise the project was awarded to the Saudi China Landbridge Consortium (SLCC), including SAR, China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC), and Al-Ayuni as the local partner. Italferr and Arabian Consulting Engineering Centre (ACEC) completed the design of the project in 2017. Freight trains will be able to travel on the new line at speeds of up to 160 km/h and passenger trains at speeds of up to 250 km/h. The implementation of the project, which includes both modernisation and new construction, is expected to take seven years.
