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RIYADH: ¶¶Òõ¶ÌÊÓƵ is in the final stages of awarding three licenses to international companies for parcel transport services in the Kingdom, according to a report by the Saudi Press Agency.

The Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) said in a tweet on Wednesday that the licenses will lead to a total investment of SR6 billion ($1.6 billion).

Since the commission took over regulation of the postal sector in the second half of 2019, the number of parcels delivered has increased by 160 percent to exceed 20.3 million parcels during the first quarter of 2021. It added that there are currently 42 licensed companies in the Kingdom.

A report issued last month by Dublin-based ResearchAndMarkets.com estimated that the Saudi courier and parcel delivery market is worth $970 million and forecast to grow by an average 6.5 percent per year until 2026.

Global giant Amazon in March announced plans to add 11 buildings to its network in ¶¶Òõ¶ÌÊÓƵ, boost its storage capacity in the Kingdom by 89 percent, and increase its geographical delivery network by 58 percent.

Dubai’s Majid Al-Futtaim recently told Arab News that the surge in demand for e-commerce had seen it expand its fulfilment and delivery network.

A new 9,000-square-meter center in Riyadh operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, handling up to 5,000 orders daily.

More than 500 workers process the orders, which are delivered by a fleet of 150 refrigerated trucks. The company plans to open more centers next year.

Earlier, in June 2020, the commission announced licenses for six parcel delivery firms in ¶¶Òõ¶ÌÊÓƵ as it rolled out a new licensing plan for the postal sector.

The CITC said that five companies — Saee, Jones Transport, Aymakan, Almajdouie Logistics and Mkhdoom — had been given licenses to transport and deliver parcels inside the Kingdom, while Fetchr had been licensed to carry out both domestic and international deliveries.