The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) has appointed Archirodon to design and build a 1.2-kilometre bridge on the site.

It will form part of the 3.3-kilometre crossing to its main hub island, Shurayrah.

Archirodon will provide engineering, procurement and construction support to complete the building of Shurayrah bridge.

The bridge will stretch a total of 1.2-kilometres across the Red Sea, with two small 36 metre sections at each end of the crossing to allow for movement of marine mammals.

“Shurayrah Bridge will become one of the main access points for guests onto the island, and its completion will mark a major undertaking in the development of the destination.

“Its construction is truly monumental as not only will the bridge be the very first connection to the islands, its construction will demonstrate our ability to accomplish huge feats of engineering whilst also protecting and enhancing the natural habitat,” said John Pagano, chief executive of TRSDC.

Its design and construction methods meet strict criteria for sustainable development.

Sustainable measures include strict controls on the prevention of any sediment movement from piling activities with multiple monitoring buoys strategically sited to alert any breakthrough from surface booms.

A precast yard for bridge sections will be established near the coast to minimize travel distances with concrete sourced from on-site batching plants.

Once completed, the bridge will connect Shurayrah Island to the mainland.

The contract follows major marine enabling works carried out by Archirodon across the development last year.

These works have helped underpin the successful delivery of the project by providing a solid foundation to ensure the efficient movement of people, materials and equipment in and around the destination, while safeguarding the sensitive ecological environment.

Shurayrah is one of the 22 islands in an archipelago of more than 90 selected for development.