DEVELOPING OPPORTUNITIES
Saudi's developers are continually searching for unique opportunities in the real estate sector, pursuing everything from niche hospitality segments to developments around transport hubs.
RAFAL has been recognized for developing unique and distinguished residential projects in Riyadh, and these projects granted RAFAL its competitiveness locally and regionally. We are exploring other considerable opportunities within the Saudi Market like the western and eastern regions of Saudi Arabia as well as the religious hospitality segment. Also, the GCC countries are definitely an interesting market, particularly Bahrain as we have been invited by a promoter in Bahrain to participate in a project. Since Bahrain seeks to improve its causeway and consolidate its two immigration points into one, this will increase the number of Saudis heading to Bahrain and thus creating more demand for real estate projects thus more development opportunities for us there.
We started in land development and, after that, we realized that we had to shift our interest into residential and commercial buildings. We are always trying to figure out how to attract new consumers by studying their needs, which are constantly changing. For example, we are thinking about creating a great living community for Saudi Arabia that is not a compound, changing our main business of developing land by creating homes within gated communities. We have another compound with our sister company, but with this compound we are trying to do apartments with all the facilities included. We are operating in real estate but focusing on unique opportunities. We are pushing to be a real estate company that has a special project with the lowest competition as well as the lowest risk. We want to be the leader who capitalizes on opportunities anywhere in Saudi Arabia.
Within the hospitality sector, our target market is long-stay corporate clients. When people are visiting Saudi Arabia or companies come from abroad, they typically opt for four- or five-star international brands and names, while other local furnished apartments are left to a lower segment of the market or local demand. And so we decided to fill that gap. With apartment hotels, guests get the standards and services of a hotel but enjoy a larger-sized room, kitchen, and additional facilities that are ideal for long-term stays. We have signed almost 200 deals with corporates in year one, and most of them are with companies such as airlines and retail.
When the government decided to launch the Haramain Railway between Mecca and Medina, it put its main station in a neighborhood called Al-Sulemania in Jeddah. We coordinated with the landowner and a fund to develop a large project adjacent to the station. We have the only fully developed land parcel in that area of its size, 1.4 million sqm. When the project started, the development became a valuable proposition for the landowner. It is an investment proposition that people need, and this land will deliver that to investors. Mass transport always requires property around it. The train station will require 17,000-20,000 hotel rooms within the first five years of operation. There is a section for housing as well as space serving both B2B and B2C commerce. I estimate 60% of the land development will focus on commerce and hospitality and 40% will focus on the residential market.
DEVELOPING OPPORTUNITIES
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Column
YB Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office & Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Brunei
TBY talks to YB Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng, Minister at the Prime Minister's Office & Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Brunei, on the sector.
read articleReview
A Crude Awakening
The Kingdom has made renewables a critical aspect of its ambitious Vision 2030 effort to diversify its economy and wean itself from a strictly carbon-based diet, not to mention empower local businesses and individuals to take up the mantle and lead the energy sector into the next generation.
read articleInterview
Abdulaziz AbdulKarim, Vice President of Procurement & Supply Chain Management (PSCM) , Saudi Aramco,
TBY talks to Abdulaziz AbdulKarim, Vice President of Procurement & Supply Chain Management (PSCM) at Saudi Aramco, on the IKTVA program, supporting local content, and looking back over a successful year.
read articleInterview
Ayman Abdullah Alfallaj, CEO, Thiqah
TBY talks to Ayman Abdullah Alfallaj, CEO of Thiqah, on how the private sector can keep pace with the speed of public reforms, delivering a strong and lasting value proposition, and integrating the fruits of privatization into the public sector.
read articleFocus: Technology Investments
Investment Calling
A technological revolution is underway in the Kingdom. Already one of the most tech-savvy nations in the Middle East, the Saudi market has long sought a thriving domestic technology and innovation scene. And with Vision 2030, it is on course to deliver just that.
read articleReview
A Hejaz Unhindered
An ambitious series of road and rail projects from the Jordanian border down to the Indian Ocean are slated to open in part before the end of 2017. They bring the Kingdom that much nearer to its goal of greater non-carbon-based economic integration with the world.
read articleInterview
Sulaiman bin Abdullah Al-Hamdan, Former Minister of Transport and Minister, Civil Service
TBY talks to Sulaiman bin Abdullah Al-Hamdan, Former Minister of Transport and current Minister of Civil Service, on an attractive legislative framework for investment, railway linkages, and port developments.
read articleInterview
Rumaih M. Al-Rumaih, President, Public Transport Authority (PTA
TBY talks to Rumaih M. Al-Rumaih, President of Public Transport Authority (PTA) & Acting President of Saudi Railway Organization, on teaming up with commercially committed partners, making sure the Kingdom's land and sea bridges are of the first order, and providing employment for all the Kingdom's inhabitants.
read articleInterview
Nabeel M. Al-Amudi, President, Saudi Ports Authority, and Minister of Transport
TBY talks to Nabeel M. Al-Amudi, Minister of Transport, and President of Saudi Ports Authority, on optimally restricting concession agreements, resolving bottlenecks in the logistics chain, and privatizing as rapidly as possible.
read articleInterview
Khaled Bin Abdullah Al Hogail, CEO & Managing Director , Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO)
TBY talks to Khaled Bin Abdullah Al Hogail, CEO & Managing Director of the Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO), on the importance of strong and rational regulations, knowledge transfers, and unifying public and private transportation networks.
read articleInterview
Imad El-Zein, CEO, Auto World-Sixt Saudi Arabia
TBY talks to Imad El-Zein, CEO of Auto World-Sixt Saudi Arabia, on growing market share in challenging circumstances, partnering with world-class players to boost its local presence, and combining better services with lower costs.
read articleInterview
Saleh H. Al-Ghamdi, Acting CEO, Saudi Air Navigation Services Company (SANS)
TBY talks to Saleh H. Al-Ghamdi, Acting CEO of Saudi Air Navigation Services Company (SANS), on maximizing safe and effective services, effectively increasing the rate of Saudization, and easing the pathway of women into the workforce.
read articleInterview
Khalil Kutubkhanah, CEO, Jeddah Development and Urban Regeneration Company (JDURC)
TBY talks to Ibrahim Khalil Kutubkhanah, CEO of Jeddah Development and Urban Regeneration Company (JDURC), on Jeddah's unplanned settlements, the company's redevelopment projects, and its partnership model with the private sector.
read articleInterview
Dr. Khalid Bin Mohammed Al Shaibani, Deputy Minister, Planning and Health & Director of the Vision Realization Office
TBY talks to Dr. Khalid Bin Mohammed Al Shaibani, Deputy Minister for Planning and Health & Director of the Vision Realization Office, on reforms within the Ministry of Health, the corporatization of healthcare provision, and transformations in care delivery.
read articleInterview
Mohanad A. Dahlan, CEO, University of Business and Technology (UBT) Company
TBY talks to Mohanad A. Dahlan, CEO of University of Business and Technology (UBT) Company, on the evolution of the company, education investments, and upcoming sectors that will need support from the sector.
read articleFocus: Universities
Broad and Deep
As part of the continuing decentralization of higher education in Saudi Arabia, individual universities are pursuing their own paths to grow their faculties, engage with various international stakeholders, and ultimately move toward a more privatized future.
read articleInterview
Rafique Izhiman, Area General Manager KSA Jeddah, Yanbu Hotels
TBY talks to Rafique Izhiman, Area General Manager KSA Jeddah/Yanbu Hotels & General Manager, Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG), Jeddah, on the role the firm plays in the market, expanding its footprint in the country, and expectations for 2017.
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