Saudi Arabia-based Rafal Real Estate Development and CITIC Construction, a subsidiary of China’s leading state-owned conglomerate CITIC group, have launched a new joint venture (JV) to establish an industrial complex in Riyadh offering the latest construction technologies in support of the Kingdom Vision 2030 projects.
The complex offers fully integrated supply chains ranging from advanced green pre-cast and modular housing solutions addition to related industries spanning electro-mechanical installation and other finishing materials that are essential for the construction of scalable social housing projects within the shortest schedule.
The National Housing Company (NHC) has extended its support though providing a strategic location for the facilities serving the newly planned masterplans in the North-East of Riyadh and will provide a land block bank serving 20,000 homes for the first phase of the project. The estimated CAPEX of the complex and construction of the houses will be over $3.2 billion.
Elias Abou Samra CEO Rafal Real Estate Development Company
“Under the joint venture, RAFAL and CITIC intend to expand production to serve the Saudi market with a fully integrated solution that would achieve higher scalability, environmental sustainability, and cost efficiency across the growing Saudi market. The project shall create jobs, provide training and support the local ecosystem to achieve the local content objectives ultimately.”
The Chairman of CITIC Construction, Mr. Chen Xiaojia, emphasized that the coming visit of President Xi will surely further strengthen the political-diplomatic and economic relationship between China and Arabic nations. CITIC, as one of the largest state-owned enterprises in China, will take prompt actions to fulfill the obligations of promoting high-quality development of “the Belt and Road” initiative.
“We are pleased to participate in the development of the Saudi construction industry and will mobilize all the relevant resources, along with Rafal, the strong local partner, to have a good invest-build-operate service for the complex with the latest technology and to complete the construction of the 20,000 homes at the earliest possible time, meeting the urgent demands of the local people,” added Mr. Xiaojia.
Construction works for the planned facility are expected to begin in Q3 2023, and the production and operations are targeted for January 2024.
