Saudi construction plans hit £148bn, says report

Saudi Arabia has construction projects worth more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in design or under way, according to a new report.

The kingdom's huge potential in the international property sector has now inspired Cityscape to launch a conference there.

According to research from the Proleads database, there are currently 285 civil construction projects worth over $260bn (£148bn) in the country.

The biggest of these, Emaar’s King Abdullah Economic City, is worth $93bn (£53bn) all on its own, but other projects include the $10bn (£5.7bn) Mile-High Tower, a 1,600m skyscraper planned for the north of Jeddah, and the $30bn (£17.1bn) Jizan Economic City to the south of the country, near the Yemen border.

Cityscape, the property and construction brand, has now announced plans to organise a conference in the country for the first time. It has already launched Cityscape conferences in Dubai, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Shanghai, New York, Sao Paolo, Mumbai, Moscow, and South Korea.

Rohan Marwaha, the managing director of Cityscape, said: “Cityscape Saudi Arabia is a natural addition. With an indigenous and growing population of 19 million and organic growth of its own, Saudi Arabia is not as exposed to potential downturns as other Arabian Gulf states and is less reliant on overseas investment.

The announcement was made at Cityscape Dubai, which continues until 9 October.