Saudi Arabia & KAUST - National US-Arab Chamber of Commerce

Emaar.E.C. Promotes
Smooth Sailing for
Flagship Economic City
The King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC),
considered the flagship of Saudi Arabia’s
six planned economic cities, is the single largest
private sector development in the Arabian
Gulf region. Master planning and development
of this 168 million square meter project
has been entrusted to Emaar, The Economic
City (Emaar.E.C.), a real estate development
and management company listed on Saudi
Arabia’s Tadawul stock market.
Emaar.E.C.
was established in
September 2006,
and Fahd Abdul
M o h s e n
Al-Rasheed, Chief
Executive Officer,
has overseen the
mega-project from
d ay one. In a
speech at the 2009 Global Competitiveness
Forum in Riyadh, Al-Rasheed explained that
the carefully planned, long-term development
of KAEC shields it from current global
economic challenges.
“The global economic crisis is in fact a
golden opportunity for the Kingdom to develop
major projects by benefiting from the lower
prices of construction materials and easier access
to a strong workforce,” noted Al-Rasheed. “This
has already lowered the cost of construction of
the KAEC Seaport by more than 30 percent.”
According
to Al-Rasheed,
work on the first
p h a s e o f
integrated city
living in KAEC
is progressing
a r o u n d t h e
clock with more
than 13,500
professionals
a n d s k i l l e d
w o r k e r s .
Economic projections indicate that Saudi
Arabia will need more than six million residential
housing units in coming years, and
Fahd Abdul Mohsen Al-Rasheed and the 20 Chiefs-of-Staff from the U.S. House of Representatives.
“Our role in welcoming
delegations from around
the world illustrates how
KAEC is emerging as a
dynamic financial hub.”
Fahd Abdul Mohsen Al-Rasheed
CEO of Emaar.E.C.
Emaar.E.C. is committed to developing areas
within KAEC that can help fulfill those needs.
Showcasing KAEC’s diverse investment
opportunities at the Riyadh Forum, Al-Rasheed
emphasized that “the real estate and construction
sector has played a key role in attracting
foreign investment to the Kingdom… and
KAEC has been driving investments in several
high growth sectors, thus adding value to
the economy.”
In September 2009, Al-Rasheed welcomed
official delegations from three nations, as
well as a U.S. Congressional staff delegation
to KAEC. CEO Al-Rasheed told 20 Chiefsof-Staff
from the U.S. House of Representatives
and the U.S. Senate, “Our role in
welcoming delegations from around the world
illustrates how K AEC is emerging as a
dynamic financial hub.”
Emaar.E.C. CEO Fahd Al-Rasheed talks with David Hamod,
President and CEO of NUSACC
US-Arab Tradeline • Fall 2009 19