Rapid progress on ground and site work has been made on the multi-billion-dollar King Abdulla Economic City (KAEC) which is on the way up in Saudi Arabia.

The project is the flagship development of Emaar Economic City (EEC), a consortium headed by real estate major Emaar Properties and a number of high-profile investors from Saudi Arabia.
Groundwork on KAEC, which was unveiled late last year, is currently going full steam ahead. The structural steel work for the presentation center has already been executed along with the installation of precast walls. Work is also under way on the project's first boulevard that comprises a 15 km long stretch with over 3,000 palm trees.
“Excavation work for the first city canal to run through the Red Sea Village, a component of KAEC, is now under way. Geotechnical investigations are being conducted for dwelling units and designs for one of the main entry gates with the first Corniche Park and Marina having already been completed. The project has around 500 workers currently on site, which will exceed 1,000 very soon,” says Nidal Jamjoom, chief executive officer of the EEC.
During the first three years, construction will be focused on four major areas comprising the port, the industrial areas, the resort district comprising two major beachfront hotels, the first golf course and associated villas as well as several apartments and office buildings in the Town Center.
The single largest private sector initiative in Saudi Arabia, the KAEC is a SR100 billion ($26.6 billion) project off the Red Sea Coast spread over a 55 million sq m greenfield site, with the prime facilitator being Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (Sagia), the body responsible for inward investments to the Kingdom.
EEC aims to become the largest property development company in the Kingdom and an investor in a diversified portfolio of high quality real estate assets. Its initial public offering of 255 million shares – comprising 30 per cent of its total equity – which aims to raise SR2.55 billion ($679.9 million) was open for subscription till August this year.
KAEC will undertake mixed-use developments in its six components comprising a modern world-class seaport, industrial district, financial island, educational and healthcare zone, resorts and the residential area. The overall project will be completed in stages, with the first batch of commercial houses and residents expected to take possession within 30 to 36 months.