Saudi gigaproject developer Diriyah Company has awarded a SR759m ($202m) contract for the bulk excavation works at the gigaproject’s second phase.

The contract was awarded to the Chinese contractor China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC).

According to the official statement published by the Saudi Press Agency, the excavation works will be undertaken in an area of about 6.3 square kilometres (sq km).

Once ready, the site will include Diriyah’s high-profile assets, including the Royal Diriyah Opera House and the 20,000-seater Diriyah Arena.

The latest contract award follows the $1.5bn award for Qurain Cultural District, a $2.08bn contract for the Northern District and a $2.13bn contract for the Wadi Safar development.

In May, the president of Diriyah Company said he expected the company to award contracts worth SR30bn-SR35bn ($8bn-$9bn) this year for its Diriyah project.

“We have awarded about SR53bn-worth of contracts so far, and this year we will award about SR30bn-SR35bn of contracts to achieve our targets,” Mohammad Saad, Diriyah Company president, told the MEED Saudi Giga Projects event in Riyadh.

The Diriyah masterplan envisages the city as a cultural and lifestyle tourism destination. Located northwest of Riyadh’s city centre, it spans 14 sq km and combines 300 years of history, culture and heritage with hospitality facilities.

Once complete, Diriyah will have the capacity to house 100,000 residents and visitors.