Revisiting Construction Delays in GCC: Oman Versus UAE

Delays in construction projects remain a concern due to the resulting increase in costs, loss of revenue, and delayed profits. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), whose members include the Sultanate of Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), continue to face huge delays in their construction projects. Despite the cultural similarities between GCC member countries, particularly Oman and the UAE, there are important nuances in their construction sectors that need to be uncovered in order to reduce liability of foreignness for international contractors and consultants seeking to relocate from one GCC country to another. Efforts to understand the causes of delays stem from the need to reduce waste and adapt to the new regime of low commodity prices. Research attempting to examine these subtle hidden differences in the GCC is lacking, and this study aims to contribute in filling that gap. A questionnaire survey was administered among construction professionals in Muscat (Oman) and Abu Dhabi (UAE). The responses (N-312) received from both countries were analysed using Exploratory Factor Analysis with Monte Carlo PCA for parallel analysis confirmation. The result revealed that weather conditions, delays in payment to contractors, shortage of materials, economic environment, poor site management and supervision, and poor communication between parties and subcontractor issues were the most critical causes of construction delays in the GCC. There were statistically significant differences between the two neighbours in terms of causes of construction delays.