King Abdullah Economic City

King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC)

King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) is the single largest private sector project in the region developed by Emaar, The Economic City. It is expected to usher in a new era of economic prosperity for Saudi Arabia and has the potential to create one million jobs and be home to two million residents.

KAEC will have six major components -- the Port, Industrial District, Central Business District (including commercial, mixed-use, retail and financial island), Resort, Educational Zone and Residential (including Corniche and souks).

Facts

Area: 168 million sq m

Investment Size: US$ 27 billion

Jobs: 1 million

Population: 2 million

Zones: Sea Port, Industrial Zone, Central Business District, Water-front Resort Area, Education Zone, and Residential Zones

Focus: Ports, Logistics, Light Industry and Services

The Port

The seaport will be the largest in the region with a capacity of over 10 million 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers per year, which is significantly higher than all other regional ports. Another key component of the port will be a custom-built Hajj Terminal.

The Industrial Zone

The Industrial Zone will cover 40 million sq m and will be dedicated to industrial and light-manufacturing facilities, identified as key growth drivers for the Saudi economy, and can host 2,700 industrial tenants. The Industrial District will have specific initiatives to encourage local entrepreneurs through incubator-like modules. International experts have been consulted to ensure that the Industrial Zone development is in line with best environmental practices.

The Central Business District (CBD)

The Central Business District (CBD) will offer 3.8 million sq m of office space, hotels and mixed-use commercial space. The Financial District, within the CBD, covers 14 hectares of land, which will be the largest regional financial nerve center for the world’s leading banks, investment houses and insurance groups.

Residential, Resorts & Leisure

Hospitality will be a strategic component with a planned 25,000 hotel rooms in more than 120 hotels. An ideal place to work and live, the KAEC will have 250,000 apartments and 25,000 villas. The retail component of KAEC will cover 8.7 million sq m and house over 50,000 shops.

Education Zone

The Education Zone will be host to a world-class educational system. Such a system will ensure the delivery of quality, high performance primary and secondary schools. Several schools will be opened to cater for the educational needs of children in each community apart from a university campus for 18,000 students.