Expo 2030 Riyadh Company plans to start construction of the main buildings, including the Saudi Pavilion and the iconic pavilion, in the third quarter of 2026, according to media reports.
Murad Al-Sayed, chief delivery officer of Expo 2030 Riyadh, told Arabic daily Al-Ekhtisadiya that the pace of contract signings will accelerate this year, including two infrastructure contracts.
Work on pavilions for participating countries will begin by the middle of this year, he added.
More than 1.5 million square meters (sq m) of land has been leveled so far, accounting for 25% of the entire Expo site.
Al-Sayed said contracts have been signed with four domestic companies for site preparation and infrastructure development.
In November 2025, the Saudi Real Estate Company (Al Akhariya) announced that one of its subsidiaries, the Saudi Real Estate Infrastructure Company (Binya), has signed a framework agreement with the Expo 2030 Riyadh Company (ERC) to carry out the initial construction of the Expo 2030 Riyadh Project.
In July 2025, Bechtel, a global engineering and construction company headquartered in the United States, was appointed as the project management consultant (PMC) for the Expo.
UK-based Buro Happold has been appointed as lead design consultant for the detailed masterplan and design of the public realm, landscape, infrastructure and public works for Expo 2030 Riyadh and its heritage, to be held in December 2025.
The expo’s master plan covers an area of 6 million square meters north of Riyadh, near the upcoming King Salman International Airport.
Expo 2030 Riyadh, which will be held from October 1, 2030 to March 31, 2031, will bring together 29 organizations from 197 countries and more than 42 million visitors across five different districts. The event is expected to attract more than 40 million visitors
Expo 2030 Riyadh Company is fully funded by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund.
(Edited by Anoop Menon) (anoop.menon@lseg.com)
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