Webuild, a global leader in the design and construction sector, has announced that its consortium – comprising Indian construction conglomerate L&T, Saudi Arabia’s Nesma and French rail transport giant Alstom – has secured the contract for the extension of Riyadh Metro’s Red Line network.

As per the contract awarded by the Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC), the Webuild-led consortium will be responsible for the design and construction of an 8.4 km new driverless metro line (of which 1.3 km will be on viaduct and the remaining 7.1 km in tunnels). 

The scope of work also includes setting up five new stations – of which three are underground – as well as the signalling systems. A tunnel boring machine (TBM) will be used for the excavation of the tunnel section. 

A key achievement for RCRC, the Red Line extension project is already a part of the Guinness World Records as the longest driverless Metro Network. 

Part of the project scope is to integrate the new section with the whole system of six driverless lines launched in Riyadh last December, which covers 176 km and is one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects in the world, said the top Italian engineering and general contractor group. 

The new section will add two more metro stations to King Saud University. In addition, it will serve new developments in the city of Riyadh and, in particular, will connect the existing Red Line and the rest of the metro network with Diriyah, the first Saudi capital and a Unesco World Heritage site, where a major development project is underway to transform the area into a leading cultural and tourist centre for the region, preserving its Najd heritage and architecture.