A Saudi developer has unveiled a 13 billion riyals (Dh12.73bn) urban regeneration plan that could transform the centre of Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia's Arriyadh Development Company is leading a consortium of eight companies to develop the project, which will be spread across 750,000 square metres and include a mix of housing, commercial and tourism components.
Khalid al Dughaither, the chief executive of Arriyadh Development Company, said the project, due to take 15 years to build, was in the final stage of planning and feasibility studies.
He added that once the masterplan was approved by the Saudi Arabian government and the land had been acquired, a new company, made up of the consortium partners, would be formed to develop the project.
About 90 per cent of the buildings that currently exist at the project's planned location will be demolished, said Mr al Dughaither, who compared the development to London's Canary Wharf and Downtown Beirut.
The bulk of the funds for the project will come from the government and investments from the partners, including Lebanon's Solidere, which built Downtown Beirut, Saudi's Arabia's Dar Al-Arkan, Saudi Real Estate Company, the kindom's Social Insurance Establishment and its Public Pension Fund.
"For any renovation development there should be government support, especially for the infrastructure, to make the project feasible," said Mr al Dughaither.
Other investors will be invited to become involved in the development, which will be built across nine phases, once the masterplan has been approved.
He said he expected to get the government's go-ahead for the project by the end of this year.
The development would help the kingdom ease its housing shortage, which stands at 2 million homes, according to figures from the property consultancy CB Richard Ellis.
Another 1.4 million homes may be needed over the next 10 years as the country's population grows to an expected 33 million by 2020, the consultancy said. Today, a large proportion of the population is under the age of 30.
The Saudi Arabian government is also investing heavily in the country's infrastructure.
Meanwhile, UAE contractors are gearing up for projects in the kingdom. Arabtec Construction, which set up a unit there in March last year, has so far moved 6,000 staff to the country and plans to increase this to 10,000 by the end of this year as it wins new projects.
Al Habtoor Leighton won its first contract in Saudi Arabia last year through a partnership with the Riyadh contractor Al Rajhi Group and is eyeing further partnerships in the country.
agiuffrida@thenational.ae
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
The specs
Engine: 3.6 V6
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Power: 295bhp
Torque: 353Nm
Price: Dh155,000
On sale: now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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