Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; January 18, 2007: His Excellency Amr Abdullah Al-Dabbagh, Governor, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA); Mr Mohamed Ali Alabbar, Chairman, Emaar.E.C, and the Members of the Emaar.E.C Board of Directors yesterday toured the project site of King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) and the newly constructed Presentation Centre, and evaluated the progress made. The Presentation Centre, which will be officially opened soon, is equipped with the latest technological innovations to give potential investors an in-depth view of the project.
A Tadawul-listed company, Emaar.E.C is developing KAEC, the single largest private sector project in the Kingdom. The project has recently been expanded to an area of 168 million sq m.
Mr Al Dabbagh met the board members to update them on the governmental initiatives that support Economic Cities in Saudi Arabia. Mr Nidal Jamjoom, Chief Executive Officer, Emaar.E.C, described to the board members the progress made so far and the roll out plan for the first phase.
“The visit of Mr Al Dabbagh underscored the major accomplishments of the company,” said Mr Alabbar. “As a project inspired by the vision of The Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin AbdulAziz AlSaud to ensure the prosperity of the Kingdom and his people, we are working to achieve his goals within a planned time frame. A company committed to the prosperity of the Kingdom, we are proud to announce that more than 80 per cent of our employees are Saudis.”
He added: “We are thankful to the Saudi government for approving the KAEC masterplan. In the first phase of construction, we are developing the Sea Port, the Industrial Zone, Resort District and Residential Zone – all of which are key drivers in attracting investors to KAEC. This complements the strategic efforts of SAGIA in ensuring sustainable economic growth of the Kingdom through focused investments in strategic sectors.”
Mr Al Dabbagh said: “The Saudi government has made tremendous progress in boosting the economy through encouraging investments in key growth areas that lead to job creation, enhancement of per capita income and thus, overall prosperity. SAGIA is focused on strengthening the Economic City initiatives such as King Abdullah Economic City, which has the potential for multi-sectoral development.”
Through its investment-friendly environment, KAEC will accelerate the Kingdom’s growth in the face of a highly competitive global marketplace, and create diverse jobs for Saudis. SAGIA is the prime facilitator for KAEC.
The first phase, currently being rolled out, includes the construction of the Sea Port, the Industrial Zone, Resort District and Residential Zone. Covering 13.8 million sq metres, the Seaport will be the largest in the region with a capacity of over 10 million twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers per year. The Industrial District will spread over 63 million sq m. The 4,000 net hectares of land will be dedicated to industrial and light manufacturing facilities.
The Resort district will feature 3,000 resort-style hotel rooms in twelve 4- and 5-star hotels. There will be two signature 18-hole golf courses and a leisure complex. An ideal place to work and live, the KAEC’s Residential Zone will have 250,000 apartments and 25,000 villas.
The other components of KAEC include a Central Business District that features a Financial Island and the Educational Zone. Located on a greenfield site on the Red Sea coast, KAEC offers easy access to the two Holy Cities of Makkah and Madina, and is near to Jeddah.
Emaar.E.C had set a record of sorts in the history of the Kingdom’s capital market when its initial public offering fetched an overwhelming response. Oversubscribed by 2.82 times, the SR2.55 billion IPO received 2.8 million applications with the total amount subscribed at SR7.18 billion. Emaar.E.C has an authorized share capital of SR8,500 million, comprising 850 million shares of nominal value SR10 each.
