RIYADH: The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) has signed two landmark strategic partnerships, to accelerate the regeneration of the historic city in Saudi Arabia’s northwest.
The agreement with Saudi IT firm AECOM and an international French consortium comprising Egis, Assystem and Setec set out a development timeline, based on three phases that lead up to 2035, as it moves from the planning stage to implementation following the launch for redevelopment in April this year.
The first phase of the development will see over SR75 billion ($15 billion) invested in AlUla.
This will include social, economic, and sustainability projects in five unique hubs, with a focus on hospitality, infrastructure, arts and culture, and social and community development.
The agreements were signed today at the Future Investment Initiative Forum currently taking place, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
RCU chief executive Amr Al-Madan said.”These new long-term strategic partnerships are critical to realizing our ambition of creating a global benchmark for sustainable tourism.
“Our new partners will be instrumental in helping us deliver a detailed and certified plan, while our focus is set on phase one we will ramp up our integrated approach towards the development of phase 2 and 3, to drive traffic, and sustain a regular flow of tourists in the long run.”