Webuild Completes Work on Key Riyadh Metro Station
Webuild, a global leader in the design and construction sector, has announced that it has successfully completed the work on the Western station of Riyadh Metro network. With the bringing into service of this station, the entire line of the Italian builder's 22-station network on the Orange line is officially complete.
Located in the western part of Riyadh along one of its main arteries – Al Madinah Al Munawarah Road – the Western Station is an urban hub that redistributes intermodal transport flows.
Covering 112,000 sq m, it integrates an elevated metro station, a bus terminal, underground parking with over 600 spaces, retail areas, a mosque and a large public square.
A 176-km infrastructure, the Orange line is the backbone of the capital’s driverless network, that places the city among the most advanced in the world for automated public transport.
Celebrating the key milestone, The Royal Commission for Riyadh City said it has started the operation on the Western Station, a vital Saudi project with a strong sustainable footprint.
The structure was designed according to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold criteria, one of the most recognised certifications for sustainability, said the RCRC in its statement.
The use of high-efficiency equipment and the contribution of self-generated renewable energy helped reduce water and energy consumption even during construction, it added.
The Italian builder pointed out that from an architectural perspective, the station offers a contemporary interpretation of the Saudi landscape. The design of its structure takes inspiration from the colours and shapes of desert dunes, it stated.
"Horizontal structures emerge from the ground, defining the entrances, guiding natural light into the interior spaces and providing shaded areas," said a spokesman for the company.
"Two large arches, spanning up to 115m and rising by 24m, support the main roofs, creating a monumental structure that blends into the urban landscape rather than standing out as an isolated object," he added.
Webuild has been present in Saudi Arabia since 1966, where it has delivered more than 90 projects, ranging from urban mobility to major civil buildings, hospitals and industrial facilities.
In Riyadh, in addition to the Orange Line, it has built iconic works such as the Kingdom Centre, an architectural landmark of the city skyline, and is involved in the construction of several lots of the Diriyah Gate urban development project.
More recently, it was awarded the contract for the extension of the Red Line of the Riyadh Metro, supporting the Saudi capital in a new phase of its urban growth.
20/05/2026
Minister: Oil Industry Has Always Stood with Iranian People in Critical Moments
Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said in a message that Iran’s oil industry has consistently stood alongside the people and served the country’s national interests during critical periods in history. In the message, read during a ceremony honoring the families of petrochemical industry personnel killed during the recent war, Paknejad praised workers who, he said, remained at their posts under the most difficult conditions and sacrificed their lives to preserve the country’s strategic oil sector.
He said operational and support teams across the oil industry worked around the clock during the 40-day conflict to ensure uninterrupted fuel supply and energy services for the Iranian people despite attacks on energy infrastructure and direct security threats. According to the minister, employees in upstream and downstream sectors, offshore platforms, export terminals, petrochemical complexes and transmission pipelines continued operations under dangerous conditions to prevent disruptions to oil and gas production, refining and exports.
Paknejad said some oil facilities were damaged in attacks carried out by the US-Zionist enemy, but restoration and repairs were launched immediately through emergency management measures and the efforts of operational teams, allowing services to continue without interruption. He said the resilience shown by oil industry workers reflected a longstanding tradition dating back to the Iran-Iraq War, when employees at the strategic Kharg Island oil export terminal maintained exports despite repeated bombardments.
The minister also referred to an attack on the petrochemical special economic zone in Mahshahr on April 4, in which six employees of Fajr Energy Company were killed while protecting facilities and maintaining production operations. Paknejad honored the memory of those killed and thanked oil industry personnel nationwide for continuing to ensure stable energy supplies under both normal and crisis conditions. He said the oil industry would continue rebuilding damaged facilities and advancing development projects through the use of the country’s technical, managerial and scientific capabilities to ensure uninterrupted services for the Iranian people. - Shana
20/05/2026
Oil Eases as Trump Claims War with Iran Will End Very Quickly
Oil prices eased on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump again asserted the war with Iran will end "very quickly", though investors remain wary about the outcome of peace talks amid continued disruptions to Middle East supply from the conflict.
Brent crude oil futures fell 45 cents, or 0.4%, to US$110.83 a barrel by 0050 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were down 27 cents, or 0.3%, to US$103.88.
Both benchmarks fell nearly US$1 on Tuesday after U.S. Vice President JD Vance said the U.S. and Iran had made progress in talks, with neither side wanting to see a resumption of military action.
"Investors are keen to gauge whether Washington and Tehran can actually find common ground and reach a peace agreement, with the U.S. stance shifting daily," said Toshitaka Tazawa, an analyst at Fujitomi Securities.
"Oil prices are likely to remain elevated given the possibility of renewed U.S. attacks on Iran and expectations that, even if a peace deal is reached, crude supply will not quickly return to pre-war levels," he said.
Despite Trump's assertion to U.S. lawmakers late on Tuesday about a quick end to the conflict, he earlier said the United States may need to strike Iran again and he had been an hour away from ordering an attack before postponing it.
His comments on the need to strike again came a day after he said he had paused a planned resumption of hostilities following a new proposal by Tehran to end the U.S.-Israeli war.
In his remarks on Tuesday Trump also said Iran's leaders are begging for a deal and warned a new U.S. attack would happen in coming days if no agreement was reached.
The U.S.-Israeli war against Iran has caused the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries about a fifth of global oil supplies, creating the world's biggest oil supply disruption, according to the International Energy Agency.
Citi on Tuesday said it expects Brent crude to rise to US$120 a barrel in the near term, stating that oil markets are under-pricing the risk of a prolonged supply disruption and broader tail risks.
To make up the shortfall in global supplies from the war, countries are relying on their commercial and strategic inventories.
In the U.S., crude oil inventories fell for a fifth straight week last week, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute data released on Tuesday, while fuel stocks also fell.
U.S. crude stockpiles reported by the Energy Information Administration are expected to have fallen by about 3.4 million barrels in the week to May 15, according to a Reuters poll. The weekly EIA data is due later on Wednesday. - Zawya
20/05/2026
Iran-China Rail Transit Capacity Could Be Upgraded
A railway expert said that Iran-China commercial train frequency to one daily train would enable cargo movement of one million tons per year.
Mohammad Javad Shahjouei, a rail industry expert, in an interview with Mehr News Agency, detailed the potential of rail trade between Iran and China. He stated that regarding rail connectivity between Iran and China, routes such as Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran and China-Pakistan-Iran have been defined. Additionally, the China-Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Iran route could become operational if Afghanistan's rail infrastructure is completed.
He added that currently, the first two routes — the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran corridor and the China-Pakistan-Iran route — exist in terms of infrastructure connectivity and are operable. Although the Pakistan route has not yet been fully utilized, the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan route has been active so far.
* Completing Afghanistan's rail lines could reshape Iran-China trade dynamics
Shahjouei explained that the Afghanistan route could take two forms: first, a direct connection from China to Afghanistan, and then the connection of Afghanistan's rail network to Iran, in which case the main challenge lies in the China-Afghanistan link. The second form is connecting China to Uzbekistan and then linking Termez in Uzbekistan to Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan — a section that currently exists. However, to complete the chain, the Herat-to-Mazar-i-Sharif route inside Afghanistan needs to be finished.
Regarding the capacity of these corridors, he continued that no exact figure can be given for total capacity, because the rail line's capacity along this route is not dedicated solely to transit through Iran. Part of it is allocated to East-West transport, and another part to domestic transport in the intermediary countries. Nevertheless, the capacity of these routes can be increased through rate adjustments and transport scheduling.
* China-Iran freight train capacity can be increased to one train daily
The rail industry expert noted that currently, according to the Railway Administration, trains on the China-Iran route run once every three to four days. However, this capacity can be upgraded to one daily train. If this level is achieved, the route could move approximately one million tons of cargo annually.
He emphasized that if the Pakistan and Afghanistan routes become operational, a significant portion of trade between Iran and China could be conducted via the rail network.
Shahjouei stated that an important point is that because rail transport is more expensive than sea transport, the goods using this route are mainly those that are in the middle or end of the value chain and possess higher added value.
The rail industry expert concluded by noting another crucial issue: making the cargo flow bidirectional. That is, imported containers must be filled with Iranian export cargo and returned to China so that this trade chain can be established sustainably. Finally, he stressed that rail cannot cover the entire volume of Iran-China trade, but it can play a significant role in moving trade priorities. - Tehran Times
20/05/2026
No Special Arrangements for Energy Exports Currently: Qatar
Qatar's foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday there were no special arrangements in place for the export of energy products, but that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz had added complexity to supply chains in the region.
20/05/2026