Qatar continues to be the region’s most expensive country to build in, as it gets set to overhaul its infrastructure ahead of the 2022 World Cup, a new report has found.

The Gulf country was ranked 15th out of 47 nations internationally, ahead of the UAE (20th) and Saudi Arabia (21st), in the 2013 International Construction Costs Report, released this week by global built asset consultancy EC Harris.

Hong Kong was deemed the most expensive country to build in, followed by Switzerland, Denmark and Sweden. Japan and Singapore also rank in the top 10.

Qatar’s rising construction costs appear to be related to its breakneck pace of development. It will be hard for the country to attract the necessary talent and import the needed materials in such a short time frame, the report states:

There is plenty of capacity in local supply chains as these have already been put in place in anticipation of a fast start to programme delivery.

By contrast, there are potential constraints in the availability of construction professionals and some imported materials – mainly due to transport infrastructure. Currently prices are stable, but have the potential to ramp up quickly if procurement is not accelerated and additional capacity built over the next two years.

Meanwhile, the UAE’s construction plans signal a rebounding of its economy, but any recovery will be challenged by competition for resources from both Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the report states.

Last year, EC Harris warned that manpower shortages were imminent in the Gulf due to the sheer number of construction projects being launched by GCC countries.

But the demand for unskilled labor has yet to translate into higher salaries or better pay packages for these workers.

Here’s the full report:

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Credit: Photo by Sam Agnew