Saudi Arabia Heavy Duty Truck Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends And Forecast (2025 - 2030)

Saudi Arabia Heavy Duty Truck Market Trends and Insights

Vision 2030 Infrastructure Mega-Projects Pipeline

NEOM’s USD 500 billion smart city covers 26,500 km² and requires 40 t-plus dumpers, low-bed trailers, and articulated haulers to shuttle steel, precast concrete, and turbines. Parallel tourism hubs like the Red Sea Project and Qiddiya spark demand corridors from port gateways to desert sites. Fifty-nine logistics centers, twenty-one already under build-out, add construction phases that peak between 2026 and 2028^{[1]“Saudi Arabia – Transportation Infrastructure,”, International Trade Administration, trade.gov}. This staggered timeline keeps procurement steady through 2030, with a visible spike ahead of the 2034 FIFA World Cup preparations.

E-Commerce-Led Freight & Port-Expansion Demand

Warehouses need high-capacity shuttles to ferry pallets between fulfillment centers and last-mile depots; each new 10,000 m² shed typically contracts two to three 26–40 t units for intracity moves. King Abdulaziz and Jeddah ports are dredging deeper channels and installing new ship-to-shore cranes. The 950 km Landbridge rail line links these ports, but rather than cannibalizing road freight, it multiplies short-haul truck moves at intermodal yards as containers switch from rail to road.

Mandatory Truck-Age Cap & Fleet Renewal Rules

Enforced in early 2024, the five-year age ceiling on imported trucks over 3.5 t forced thousands of Euro 3 and Euro 4 units off Saudi roads^{[2]“Regulations on Heavy Truck Imports,”, Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization, saso.gov.sa}. Operators face a binary decision: scrap or upgrade. Scrappage drives a sharp, front-loaded buying cycle that favors brands with ready inventory and financing. The rule dovetails with energy-efficiency standards that penalize fuel-hungry engines, pushing fleets toward Euro 6 or equivalent models that cut diesel consumption. Because imported used vehicles accounted for nearly one-third of the historical supply, the policy shifts demand firmly to new-build units, compressing the standard seven-year replacement window into three to four years.

Arabian Shield Mining Boom (Above 40 t Tipper Demand)

Ma’aden’s phosphate, gold, and copper expansions across northern zones require continuous haulage of overburden and ore. Single pit operations deploy up to 200 super-heavy tippers each, driving the above-40 t segment’s 10.29% CAGR. Rough terrain demands double-frame chassis, reinforced suspension, and torque-rich powertrains, pushing average selling prices well above standard on-road units. Mine-to-port chains stretch 400 km on average, often on private haul roads, producing high annual kilometer accrual that compels quicker replacement.

Diesel-Price Volatility After Subsidy Reforms

Aramco raised the pump price to SAR 1.66 per liter (USD 0.44) in January 2025, an increase of 44% year on year^{[3]“Saudi Diesel Price Reforms,”, Middle East Economic Survey, mees.com}. Fleets operating older Euro 3 engines consume 8–10 % more fuel than Euro 6 models, turning price hikes into a competitive wedge. Smaller owner-operators running three to five trucks struggle to secure hedging, forcing higher freight rates or route rationalization. Margin compression spurs interest in LNG and hybrid units, yet infrastructure for those fuels remains thin outside urban hubs.

Imported Chassis Supply-Chain Bottlenecks

Semiconductor shortages have eased, but forged axle housings and aluminum wheels remain sporadically scarce due to European energy costs and Asian shipping delays. Lead times for specific 6×4 configurations stretched to nine months in 2024, slowing deliveries as the age-cap rule spurred demand. CKD assembly should offset risk, yet ramp-up to 50,000 units per year at the first Hyundai-PIF plant will not occur until late 2026, leaving a temporary capacity gap.

Segment Analysis

By Gross Vehicle Weight Rating: Mining Drives Super-Heavy Demand

Saudi Arabia's heavy-duty truck market size for the 26–40 t class stood at USD 3.81 billion in 2024, accounting for 43.41% of deliveries. The above-40 t group, while smaller, is forecast to post a 10.29% CAGR through 2030, fueled by NEOM bulk earthworks and Arabian Shield pit expansions. Vision 2030’s portfolio ensures a continuous pipeline of concrete, steel, and aggregate shipments, positioning super-heavy tippers and low-bed trailers as the fastest-moving inventory. Operators value the higher payloads and reduced cycle counts, which lower per-ton haul costs even after factoring in higher unit prices.

The 16–26 t band remains the backbone for regional distribution and municipal projects, benefitting from road-freight growth tied to e-commerce fulfilment. Its steady 6–7% CAGR reflects balanced demand across construction, retail, and light industrial sectors. OEMs targeting fleet conversions in this range emphasize driver comfort and telematics to reduce downtime and extend service intervals.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Propulsion: Electric Transition Accelerates Despite ICE Dominance

Internal combustion engines represented 91.87% of Saudi Arabia's heavy-duty truck market share in 2024, but electrified alternatives are gaining traction as capital projects specify lower-emission fleets. The government’s target of 5,000 fast chargers by 2030 underpins confidence in battery-electric adoption for city and regional duty cycles. PepsiCo’s 4 t Quantron pilot in Riyadh demonstrated 200 km daily coverage with overnight depot charging, proving viability for short-haul beverage delivery.

Natural-gas engines ride on abundant domestic reserves, offering 15–20% fuel cost savings versus diesel. Hybrid and plug-in hybrid variants bridge the range gap until public fast-charging becomes ubiquitous. Fuel-cell electric trucks, though nascent, benefit from NEOM hydrogen output and Aramco’s station roll-out along the Dhahran–Tabuk corridor, positioning them for heavy long-haul once cost parity improves.

By Axle Type: Multi-Axle Configurations Gain Traction

Six-by-four models held 46.54% of shipments in 2024, balancing traction with cost for mixed on- and off-road work. Construction fleets standardize on this layout to negotiate sand, gravel, and unfinished roads. The 6×2 configuration’s 8.82% CAGR reflects highway haulers chasing lower rolling resistance and tire wear. Operators moving containers or fuel tankers between ports and inland depots favor 6×2 tractors paired with tri-axle trailers to optimize payload under national weight limits.

Specialist 8×8 chassis serve military, oil-field, and extreme mining roles. Although volumes are modest, elevated unit values make them a profitable niche for OEMs equipped with heavy-duty driveline technology. Demand clusters around NEOM’s mountainous sections and remote gold mines where conventional road access is limited.

By Truck Type: Articulated Growth Reflects Long-Haul Expansion

Rigid trucks commanded 60.88% of units in 2024, covering construction dumpers, concrete mixers, refuse collectors, and municipal tankers. Their ubiquity in city streets and project sites ensures a stable baseline demand. Articulated tractors, however, are forecast to grow at a 9.78% CAGR as Saudi Arabia integrates into global trade lanes. The Landbridge rail link and 21 new logistics centers feed containerized traffic that favors tractor-trailer combinations for rapid swap-out at yards.

Special bodies in the “Others” segment, such as truck-mounted cranes, see their order books tied directly to mega-project phases. While volumes do not surge like tractor sales, specialized bodies command higher margins, attracting domestic builders that can localize superstructure fabrication

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Application: Construction Leads, Logistics Accelerates

Construction and mining absorbed 43.28% of Saudi Arabia's heavy-duty truck market size in 2024, with spending anchored by a USD 70.33 billion sector outlay. Massive cement, aggregate, and pre-cast flows translate into continuous tipper and mixer rotations. Though smaller today, freight and logistics are projected to grow at a 9.28% CAGR as container throughput and e-commerce volumes rise. Warehouse-to-hub shuttles and intercity parcel linehaul demand medium-haul tractors that cycle up to 250,000 km annually.

Municipal services, oil-field support, and utilities form a stable third leg. These buyers prioritize reliability over cutting-edge tech, extending equipment life with rigorous maintenance, yet they gradually shift toward cleaner powertrains as corporate sustainability mandates tighten.

Geography Analysis

Eastern Province led with 31.25% of deliveries in 2024 because petrochemical hubs at Jubail and Ras Al-Khair generate constant inbound raw-material and outbound product flows. King Abdulaziz Port handles the highest container volume nationwide, spawning dense drayage corridors that soak up new 6×4 tractors. With a 7.68% CAGR to 2030, the region continues to anchor growth through refinery upgrades and the rollout of alternative-fuel corridors serving hydrogen and LNG trucks.

Riyadh Province thrives as the political and commercial heartland. Its inland dry port and the convergence of north-south and east-west highways funnel goods to a population of more than 8 million. Here, 26–40 t distribution trucks dominate, moving retail and FMCG loads from suburban fulfillment centers to urban stores. Logistics players leverage Riyadh’s geographic midpoint to backhaul containers arriving from both Gulf and Red Sea gateways.

Makkah Province stands third, propelled by religious tourism and Jeddah Islamic Port’s box traffic. Seasonal peaks during Hajj lift spot truck rates, compelling operators to maintain flexible capacity. The remaining provinces grow off lower bases but benefit from decentralization policies and infrastructure upgrades, especially the northwestern Tabuk region as NEOM scales. Improved road links and industrial clustering redistribute future fleet deployments beyond the traditional east–west axis.