< Previous12 CONSTRUCTION WEEK JUNE 2021 POWER 100 WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM Taking the top spot in Construction Week’s Power 100 list this year is Osama Bishai, CEO of NASDAQ Dubai- and Egyptian Stock Exchange-listed Orascom Construction. Climbing six positions from last year’s list, Bishai is spearheading the contracting giant that has “positively” been contributing to the development of Egypt, through projects across transportation, energy, industrial, and commercial among other sectors. Since joining the company in 1985, Bishai has transformed the business to become one of the most successful contractors in the region. Egypt is Orascom Construction’s home country and the company, according to Bishai, has been “excited” about the North African nation. It has been supportive of Egypt’s Vision 2030 agenda that focuses on stimulating connectivity amongst Egyptians through rail and road projects. The company is currently working on major transport projects in Egypt, including Cairo Metro Line 4 and Cairo Monorail. Other major projects that the company is involved in are the Grand Egyptian Museum and the Magdi Yacoub Global Heart Centre. It has also worked on Ras Ghareb Wind Farm, which is based on the build- own-operate model. The project began commercial operations in 2019. In 2020, when the construction sector was grappling with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Orascom Construction continued to stabilise its business. The contractor maintained a strong backlog at $5.4bn as of 31 December 2020, which comprised high- quality projects. Over the past 12 months, the construction heavyweight generated positive operating cash ow and maintained a net cash position to re ect on the company’s healthy operations. During this time, the rm also strengthened its health and safety efforts to achieve multiple targets including low Lost Time Injury (LTI) rates at many of its sites, including at mega water projects in Egypt and commercial projects in the US. As the contractor continues to be “vigilant” in 2021, it expects to increase this year’s revenues in line with the level achieved in 2020. OSAMA BISHAI 1POWER 100 JUNE 2021 CONSTRUCTION WEEK 13WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM Ranked second on Construction Week’s Power 100 list is John Pagano, CEO of The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) and AMAALA. Pagano has been at the helm of TRSDC since its inception in 2018 and has spent the last three years ensuring that the 28,000km2 The Red Sea Project becomes the world’s most ambitious regenerative tourism destination. He took the reins as the CEO of the 3,800km2 AMAALA gigaproject in January 2021. According to Pagano, taking up the role at AMAALA allowed him to utilise the “learnings and practices” developed at TRSDC, and apply them to the destination, which is focused on health and wellness as well as arts and culture. Despite the dif cult circumstances, the project made signi cant progress on the ground. Currently, more than 7,000 workers are deployed on-site, while the developer has awarded over 500 contracts to date worth more than $4bn (SAR15bn). These contracts were awarded for the airside infrastructure works to an all-Saudi joint venture between Nesma & Partners and Almabani. TRSDC has marked many successes including the completion of its one million m2 nursery, The Landscape Nursery, which is home to more than 15 million plants. The rst 80km of new roads at the gigaproject have been completed, including the airport road. Another milestone has been the completion of the Construction Village, which is set to house 10,000 workers. Additionally, work is also progressing at the Coastal Village, which will be home to around 14,000 people who will eventually operate the destination. In 2020, TRSDC also signed a PPP for its Utilities Package, and the contract was awarded to a consortium led by ACWA Power. Most recently, TRSDC closed a $3.76bn (SAR14.12bn) term loan facility and revolving credit facility with Banque Saudi Fransi, Riyad Bank, Saudi British Bank and Saudi National Bank. Phase 1 of The Red Sea Project is on track to be completed by 2023. Once fully operational, the gigaproject will contribute $5.9bn (SAR22bn) annually to Saudi Arabia’s GDP. JOHN PAGANO 214 CONSTRUCTION WEEK JUNE 2021 POWER 100 WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM The President and Co-founder of Dubai-based construction heavyweight ASGC, Emad Azmy enters Construction Week’s Power 100 list in 2021 at number three, climbing two positions from last year. At the helm of the group since 1989, Azmy has incorporated strategic decisions to take ASGC into new directions. Under his stewardship the group has also demonstrated operational expertise and ability to deliver turn-key projects across a diverse portfolio. One of the main reasons that has led the group to be one of the top contractors in the region is its ability to handle most of the construction activities in-house. In Azmy’s words, this gives the company “a high degree of control over all the projects and construction lifecycle”. It is not just in-house abilities, technological advancements too have contributed to the group’s success. The adoption of technology has aided in streamlining processes for ASGC, as the company continues to further enhance its technological capabilities to be an “innovative” contractor. Despite the slowdown caused by the pandemic, ASGC recorded a signi cantly successful year with the completion of ve of its remarkable projects, including Expo 2020 Dubai’s Sustainability Pavilion, Dubai Harbour Cruise Terminal and HH Sheikh Mohamed Bin Rashid Library as well as Harbour Views. The contractor also secured the Building Completion Certi cates (BCCs) for these projects. In addition to the Sustainability Pavilion, ASGC has also worked on Expo’s Opportunity Pavilion and several country pavilions, including Pakistan, Palestine, Morocco, Ukraine, and Egypt. While the UAE is ASGC’s home country, it has also expanded operations in Egypt and Angola in Africa. Some of its renowned projects in the North African nation include, Magra El Oyoun Fence Area Development, Mivida Of ce Park Buildings, and infrastructure of R7 District in the New Administrative Capital, among others. Looking ahead, in 2021, ASGC anticipates its revenues to cross $1bn across the group, as Azmy expects “a strong market recovery” in second half of the year, with an increased demand in the residential sector. EMAD AZMY 3POWER 100 JUNE 2021 CONSTRUCTION WEEK 15WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM As the President and CEO of China State Construction Engineering Corporation Middle East (CSCEC ME), who has been heading the role since 2004, Yu Tao oversees the contrator’s regional oprations in the GCC and across the Middle East. In 2020, CSCEC ME continued to deliver its projects, despite the slowdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these projects were R1086 Dubai Hills Estate Mall Access-Infrastructure and Umm Suqeim Street Upgrading Project, Dubai Digital Park, Deira Waterfront Development Phase I Plot 2, Expo 2020 Roads Network-Contract 2, among others. It is also working on the Etihad Rail Phase 2A Package. In Tao’s words, “quick response to the pandemic, high efficiency, excellent HSE performance, and complex project management” has helped the contractor during the past year. The contractor has adopted a centralised procurement, technological innovation, and other measures, which has helped in reducing costs and achieve higher profits. Continuing its work on UAE- based projects, CSCEC ME looks to expand into Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iraq, and other regions such as Eastern Europe, as part of its regional and global expansion strategy. Tao is “hopeful” for the market to recover, and aims to achieve $1.2bn to $1.5bn in revenues for 2021. Spearheading one of the largest construction rms in the region, ALEC, is its CEO Kez Taylor, who takes fth place in Construction Week’s Power 100 list in 2021. In the past 12 months, ALEC has maintained a healthy order book by securing work for 2021 and 2022, as it marked a signi cant improvement in its operational ef ciency. The company is implementing its new ERP system setting — a stepping stone of its digital transformation. ALEC has also increased the utilisation of BIM in addition to using software and digital solutions across different processes within the rm. The contacting heavyweight has been digitising its core operations through the HIVE initiative which aims to connect over 53 applications, 219 core processes, scores of departments, business units, sites, as well as 2,300 staff members. Another distinctive milestone for the company is the launch of new business verticals, including ALEC Energy and ALEC Modular, as Taylor says these businesses address the market trends and the “future of construction”. ALEC’s current pipeline of projects exceeds $2.7bn (AED10bn) in value. Some of these projects include the expansion of Al Maktoum International Airport, One Za’abeel, Marina Gate 2 and 3, Tower 9, Dubai Hills Regional Mall, emabling works for Dubai Creek Harbour Retail District, Deira Waterfront - Plot 4, Expo 2020 Dubai’s Conference & Exhibition Centre and Mobility Pavilion, as well as KSA Pavilion. YU TAO KEZ TAYLOR 5 416 CONSTRUCTION WEEK JUNE 2021 POWER 100 WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM Debuting in Construction Week’s Power 100 list this year is the President of Saudi Arabia’s Diriyah Development Company (DevCo), Jonathan Timms, who is spearheading the design and delivery of Diriyah’s three masterplans, under the overall leadership of Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA’s) CEO, Jerry Inzerillo. Timms has been part of DGDA’s leadership team for the last two and a half years, and was previously the authority’s Chief Design & Development Of cer. DGDA’s recently announced subsidiary entity DevCo was incorporated as part of its growth plans, and to help accommodate the authority’s ambitious and era de ning 2021 targets. The DevCo drives the design and development aspects of DGDA, sitting within the broader ambitions and targets of the overall authority. DGDA currently operates a $40bn (SAR 155bn) development pipeline across three masterplans. In 2020, DGDA recorded tremendous momentum with progress being made for design approvals and on-site acceleration. The developer inked over $800m (SAR 3bn) worth of contracts in March 2021, followed by a further set of contracts valued at $800m (SAR 3bn) in April 2021, including the approval of an additional 10 hotels in the Wadi Safar development, taking the total number of hotels within the projects to 29. Another milestone for DGDA was revealing its third masterplan, which will comprise an additional ve million m2 of gross oor area. Timms says that it is over four times the size of the Diriyah Gate Phase 1 development area and will be home to the relocated Riyadh Opera. Over the past 12 months, DGDA marked numerous successes with the completion of the detailed masterplans for both Wadi Safar and Diriyah Gate Phase 1 in line with KSA’s Vision 2030. It has also commenced construction work for initial assets including Bujairi F&B and Diriyah Art Oasis museum. DGDA is projecting a 450% increase this year in the level of development activity on top of 2020, with a continued acceleration again into 2022, and plans to sign $2.7bn (SAR 10bn) worth of contracts this year. JONATHAN TIMMS 6POWER 100 JUNE 2021 CONSTRUCTION WEEK 17WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM Spearheading Saudi Arabia-based contracting giant Al Bawani is its CEO, Fakher Al-Shawaf, who enters the top ten ranking in Construction Week’s Power 100 list this year, jumping more than 20 spots compared to 2020. Managing the reins of the company for over 22 years, Al-Shawaf has driven Al Bawani to build “a very strong” engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) team while increasing its reliance on technology. This has helped the company to capture deal ow, deliver projects on time, and maximise its ef ciency. In Al-Shawaf’s words, the contractor’s “hands-on approach in management and ability to adopt to challenging environments” has set it apart. During 2020, when the world rst faced the pandemic, many companies were forced to either lay their employees off or cut salaries to nancially support their businesses. Al Bawani, however, did not lower the wages of any of its employees. On the other hand, the company set up a special unit to follow up with every employee who had been infected by the virus. Continuing to stay agile in a crisis situation, Al Bawani managed to grow and diversify its business by securing billions of riyals worth of projects across sectors in different regions within Saudi Arabia and abroad. The contractor won contracts from Saudi Rail Company (SAR), Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA), The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC), and King Salman Park Foundation. Some of the projects that Al Bawani has been associated with over the past 12 months include, Saudi Telecom Company’s Datacentre Project in two strategic locations, Riyadh Airport Company’s (RAC) King Khalid International Airport (KKIA) T1 and TL1 refurbishment, and King Salman Medical and Educational City in Yemen. Over the years, Al Bawani has established its position as a long-term partner for the government and has won a number of public-private partnership (PPP) projects in Saudi Arabia. In 2021 leading into 2022, the contractor aims to create a more “sustainable business” through continous improvement and diversi cation. FAKHER AL-SHAWAF 718 CONSTRUCTION WEEK JUNE 2021 POWER 100 WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM Climbing one spot in Construction Week’s Power 100 list this year is Stephen Flint, Managing Director of Khansaheb Group and Khansaheb Civil Engineering. Flint worked closely with the company’s shareholders over the past 12 months to manage the acquisition and transfer of shareholding to 100% ownership by its local owners, Khansaheb Investments. Despite the slowdown in 2020, Khansaheb has delivered several projects together valued at approximately $326.7m (AED1.2bn). Additionally, it has secured $272.3m (AED1bn) worth of new contracts over the past 12 months. Some of the projects that Khansaheb has delivered and has been working on include the University of Birmingham in Dubai, Sports Society Mirdif, Sofitel Hotel at Wafi, Aquaventure Water Park Palm Jumeirah, Heriot-Watt University Dubai, Kempinski Hotel Business Bay, Mall of the Emirates re-development, in addition to various work packages at Expo 2020 Dubai. The UAE-based 85-year-old contractor expects revenues of $326.7m (AED1.2bn) in 2021. According to Flint, the revenue has been impacted by changes in the market due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The contractor has now been “very selective” about the type of opportunities its focuses on, and has continued to select projects that enable it to provide “one stop shop” service. Entering Construction Week’s Power 100 list within the top ten segment of the ranking for the rst time is Greg Kane, CEO of WSP Middle East, who took up the role ve years ago. 2020 was a dif cult year for the industry, but for WSP Middle East it continued to be “positive”, and the consultancy embarked on 2021 with a “good start”. The company simpli ed its organisational structure across many levels by re-aligning its market facing business units over the past 12 months. WSP Middle East introduced Project Management Services and Advisory Services business units in addition to its Transport and Infrastructure as well as Property and Buildings business verticals. Over the past 12 months, the rm worked on some of the most important projects in the Middle East. These include One Za’abeel, Ain Dubai, Expo 2020 Dubai’s Mobility Pavilion, Address Residences Jumeirah Resort, Uptown Tower, FIFA Stadium Programme, Local Roads & Drainage Programme (LRDP) in Doha, as well as Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Metro. For Kane, the “ exibility and strength” of the group’s operating model as well as the efforts of its leadership and teams, led WSP Middle East to end the year in a strong nancial position. Now, the company aims to grow its revenues by approximately 5% in 2021, with a major focus on winning work across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, while also focusing on Oman. In Kane’s words, WSP Middle East is currently “on track” to deliver on its objectives. STEPHEN FLINT GREG KANE 9 8POWER 100 JUNE 2021 CONSTRUCTION WEEK 19WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM Debuting in Construction Week’s Power 100 list this year is Ahmed Al Khatib, Chief Development and Delivery Of cer at Expo 2020 Dubai, who has been part of the World Expo’s journey since 2011. In a recent interview with Constructoin Week, Al Khatib said that all of the construction activities in terms of the organiser works had been completed at the 4.38km2 expo site. The Expo team is now busy with the nal leg of activities including nishing as well operational works. In April 2021, Expo 2020 Dubai became one of the most sustainable World Expos ever after eight infrastructure projects across the expo site were awarded the highest rating under CEEQUAL, the internationally recognised sustainability assessment for civil engineering. Expo 2020 Dubai also became the rst project in the Middle East to have received an ‘Excellent’ CEEQUAL rating. Al Wasl Plaza, which is located at the heart of the expo’s site, exceeded the award’s highest threshold, with a 91.6% score. Currently, the expo team is also looking at the operational aspects of the global event, which was supported by the opening of Terra - The Sustainability Pavilion to the public, earlier this year. According to Al Khatib, Expo 2020 has been working closely with the participating countries, to help them to complete their pavilions. The World Expo’s target for all the countries is to complete their pavilions by July 2021, three months before the global event. Expo 2020 Dubai also recently announced the launch of the Expo 2020 Dubai Metro station, which is part of the Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority’s Route 2020 station. The station will initially be used by Expo pass holders, offering easy access to the site, with its full launch to the public when Expo’s gates open on 1 October 2021. AHMED AL KHATIB 10Next >