Darawiz has obtained internal documents from organisations monitoring international arbitration disputes in commercial cases, relating to a dispute between the state-owned Saudi Electricity Company (Saudi Energy) on one side and Arabian Bemco Contracting Company Limited and its foreign subcontractors on the other, following the suspension of work on three power projects in Riyadh and on the Red Sea coast as a result of the financial pressures affecting the state budget.

The parties have agreed to enter international arbitration proceedings under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules, with the arbitration seat set in Bahrain.

The dispute began after one of the projects was suspended in 2021, but escalated significantly following the cancellation of two additional projects in early 2026 that were being executed by the same contractor.

▪️ Main contractor responsible for the three projects:

Arabian Bemco Contracting Company Limited

A Hejazi construction company headquartered in Jeddah.

▪️ Compensation being sought by the main contractor and its foreign subcontractor partners following the termination of the contracts:

800 million Saudi riyals.

It is understood that the arbitration panel is examining each of the three cancelled projects as a separate case, although they have been administratively consolidated under the 2021 dispute file.