Gulf Construction Online - Ambitious vision

Riyadh/The Big 5 Saudi

Six Flags Theme Park ... one of two theme park projects launched at Qiddiya.

Ambitious vision

With its ambitions set on becoming one of world’s top livable cities, Riyadh has been focusing on diverse aspects ranging from raising the homeownship percentage to greening the capital and from entertainment and culture to wellness facilities, writes Bina Goveas.

01 March 2022

Massive deals each worth billions of Saudi riyals have been announced recently on two of the Saudi capital city’s most ambitious development projects – Diriyah Gate and Qiddiya – with all indications pointing to further mega construction awards and the revving up of activity on site.

In addition, the pace has been picking on the four mega projects - the King Salman Park, Sports Boulevard, Riyadh Art and Green Riyadh, which were launched in March 2019 as part of Saudi Vision 2030 to position Riyadh among the world’s top 100 most livable cities. These wellness projects are expected to jointly offer opportunities worth $15 billion for the private sector to invest in the residential, commercial, recreational and wellness areas.

The Green Riyadh project received further limelight late last year when Saudi Arabia announced a SR700 billion ($186.63 billion) investment in developing a green economy in a bid to spearhead a region-wide initiative to combat climate change and reduce carbon emissions.

As part of the first set of the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI) strategies, the kingdom will plant 450 million trees and rehabilitate eight million hectares of degraded lands by 2030. The SGI was announced by Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Supreme Committee for Green Saudi Arabia Chairman HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud last October at the Saudi Green Initiative Forum.

The kingdom will plant 450 million trees and rehabilitate 8 million hectares of degraded lands by 2030 as part of the Saudi Green Initiative.

At the forum, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC), launched the Riyadh Sustainability Strategy which aims to reduce carbon emissions in the city by 50 per cent. In addition, there will be SR346 billion invested in sustainability initiatives and projects, stimulating the private sector.

In line with the kingdom’s green drive, the RCRC has embarked on its new sustainability strategy for the capital which includes 68 ambitious initiatives and projects across five sectors: energy and climate change, air quality, water management, waste management, biodiversity, and natural areas.

As per these plans, SR30 billion will be invested to increase the use of treated water for irrigation in Riyadh from 11 per cent to 100 per cent, and nearly SR56 billion will be spent to recycle 94 per cent of waste into energy.

A key enabler in reducing carbon emissions will be the King Abdulaziz Project for Public Transport – which includes the Riyadh Metro that is expected to be flagged off later this year, which is projected to boost the use of public transportation in the city from five to 20 per cent. A mammoth infrastructure project, Riyadh Metro boasts six major metro lines and 85 railway stations that have been established to cover the capital city from all directions. There will also be a network of buses that integrates with the network.

By 2030, the capital plans to take electric vehicle usage on the roads up to 30 per cent.

The Green Riyadh and Riyadh Sustainability initiatives aim to plant 15 million trees and increase the per capita share of green space from 1.7 sq m to 28 sq m, within urban areas by 2030. This will lower city temperatures by 1.5 to 2 deg C and reduce the main radiant temperature in the range of 8 to 15 degrees in the shade. More than 3,300 neighbourhood parks of varying sizes and 43 major city parks will be built in the city of Riyadh.

The RCRC is also expected to invest another SR30 billion to increase energy production from renewable sources by 50 per cent.

Meanwhile, major contracts were awarded on Sports Boulevard – one of the four wellbeing projects planned at an investment of $23 billion. In October last year, the Sports Boulevard Foundation announced contracts worth SR2.5 billion to multiple Saudi companies for the construction of Phase One of the wellness project. A first-of-its-kind project in the region, Sports Boulevard will feature a 135-km-long professional cycling track covering the city and the surrounding valleys. Adding 3.5 million sq m of new open space across the city, it will also feature a sports pavilion, riding stables and athletics tracks.

Another key initiative launched last October was a national infrastructure fund to support up to SR200 billion in projects over the next decade. The National Infrastructure Fund (NIF) will invest in areas such as water, transportation, energy and health, contributing to Saudi Arabia’s plans to transform the economy and make it less reliant on oil revenue, according to state news agency SPA.

Housing

Housing has continued to be a priority for the government and recently Roshn, a national community developer fully owned by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) has been spearheading efforts to accelerate in home ownership rates by citizens across the kingdom.

According to Knight Frank’s recent Saudi Arabia Real Estate Market Review, the government’s efforts to “support growth in the residential market are delivering an exceptionally active development market, with 155,000 new homes scheduled to be completed before the end of 2023 across Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam; 100,000 of which are in Riyadh alone.”

Roshn’s first residential community in the capital, Sedra, will feature over 30,000 private homes. The community is spread across 20 million sq m and offers a walkable, feature-rich living environment with mosques, kindergartens and schools, hospitals, healthcare centres, shopping malls, commercial retail spaces and police stations.

Roshn said more than 4,500 homes will be built in Phase One of the project. In January, Roshn signed a partnership deal with Retal Urban Development – the first sub-developer for the project - for a neighbourhood featuring 103 villas and townhouses within Phase One.

Retal has also launched its key residential project, Nesaj Town Al Narjis, in Riyadh in partnership with the National Housing Company. The project spans over an area of 160,000 sq m and features 550 independent housing units.

Among other efforts, National Developmental Housing Corporation (Sakan) signed an agreement worth SR1.62 billion late last year with Al Birr Charitable Society to build 5,000 new homes for the needy families in the Riyadh region.

Diriyah Gate

Work is well in progress on Diriyah Gate as part of a $50.6 billion transformation plan for the historic city of Diriyah, a massive undertaking being managed by the Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA), whose aim is to position Diriyah as Saudi Arabia’s foremost historical, cultural and lifestyle destination. The $20-billion Diriyah Gate development is centred around At-Turaif, a Unesco World Heritage site (see Page 52).

Work on the development – located north-west of Riyadh – remains on time, on budget and on track and will be the first giga project in the world to simultaneously open, ground-break and announce world-class assets every year from 2022 until completion in 2026, said the DGDA.

Diriyah Development Company (DevCo), a development subsidiary of DGDA, has awarded a SR1.2 billion contract to Nesma for infrastructure work to form the principal Diriyah Interchange on Riyadh’s Western Ring Road (see Page 14). This follows the award of the project’s largest contract to date worth SR3.99 billion to Salini Saudi Arabia for the construction of its ‘super basement’ car park. The state-of-the-art three-level underground car park supports the commercial heart of the culture and heritage project’s Diriyah Square.

The mixed-use district will offer a combination of leisure and entertainment, ultra-luxurious hotels, retail, Grade A offices and residential units designed in the traditional Najdi architectural style, set for completion in 2024. It also includes the King Salman Grand Mosque.

The car park hosts an intricate network of underground roads and tunnels situated below Diriyah Square with multiple access points, with the capacity to accommodate 10,500 cars.

At the end of last year, DGDA announced the first 14 of its planned 38 hotel brands that will manage facilities at Diriyah Gate. The hotel brands are strategically located across two of DGDA’s four masterplans – Diriyah Gate and Wadi Safar.

Qiddiya

Work is also in progress on Qiddiya, which is expected to be the kingdom’s future capital of entertainment, sports and the arts, under development on the outskirts of Riyadh. The Saudi-based Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC) has recently awarded contracts for two key theme parks at the entertainment hub – a SR2.8 billion deal to build the kingdom’s first and the region’s largest water theme park and a SR3.75-billion contract for the construction of its Six Flags theme park, a first in the region.

Malls

Two massive mall projects in Riyadh - The Avenues-Riyadh and Mall of Saudi – are now moving ahead after a series of delays. The foundation stone was laid last month on The Avenues – Riyadh, following the award of the $1.76 billion construction contract to Nesma & Partners.

With a gross leasable area of 400,000 sq m and a built-up area of more than 1.4 million sq m, The Avenues – Riyadh will be one of the largest commercial malls in the Middle East. It will also feature

five multi-purpose towers that include hotels, residential apartments, offices and parking for 18,000 vehicles.

Meanwhile, Mall of Saudi is being developed by Majid Al Futtaim, the leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer in the region, which in October last year appointed global consultancy firm Maceto support the delivery of its flagship $4.26 billion integrated retail and lifestyle development – Riyadh North – which includes the Mall of Saudi.

The master-planned development is expected to house over 600 retail stores across a 300,000-sq-m gross leasable area, nine hotels and branded residences with 2,000 keys, and Ski Saudi – the largest indoor ski slope and snow park in the Middle East.

Among other retail developments, construction work is in progress on Solitaire mall, a vibrant 65,000-sq-m urban district being developed by the local Al Marqab Investment Company in Riyadh.

Projects

Among other plans, Riyadh is also expected to host the first non-profit city in the world, according to plans announced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman who is Founder and Chairman of the Board of Mohammed bin Salman Misk Foundation.

The Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Non Profit City is expected to be a model for the development of the non-profit sector globally and an incubator for youth and volunteer groups as well as local and international non-profit institutions.

It will come up over a 3.4 sq km plot dedicated by Prince Mohammed in Irqah neighbourhood, adjacent to Wadi Hanifa.

The city’s masterplan embodies a human-centered, advanced digital metropolis designed to be sustainable, pedestrian-friendly, and will allocate more than 44 per cent of the total area for green open spaces to promoting sustainable development.