US construction giant Aecom is to provide airside construction supervision and quality control services for the new international airport serving the Red Sea tourism development in Saudi Arabia.

The Los Angeles-based company signed a deal with the Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) to oversee work on a design by UK architect Foster + Partners. Among the particular challenges of the project is that it will derive all its power from renewable sources.

Work will begin from next month and is due to finish in 2022, creating a facility with a passenger capacity of 1 million by 2030.

Aecom president Lara Poloni : “Aecom is excited to partner with TRSDC to bring this iconic project to life. This partnership is a testament to the resilience and adaptability of our business and teams across the region.”

“The airport will provide an unforgettable aviation experience for travellers through revolutionary design and cutting-edge technologies,” she stated.

Ian Laski, chief executive of Aecom Arabia, added: “This key award confirms The Red Sea Development Company’s trust in the depth of our resources both within the Kingdom and across the region and our ability to deliver specialized aviation-related services for this strategic project.”

The Red Sea Project, announced in 2017, will cover 34,000 square kilometres – an area bigger than Belgium – on the Red Sea coast between the cities of Umluj and Al Wajh.

Attractions will include a protected nature reserve, coral reefs, the extinct volcanoes of Harrat Al-Rahat and, inland, the ruins of Madain Saleh, a Unesco World Heritage Site with structures dating to the pre-Islamic Nabatean Kingdom of the 1st century AD.