Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Holding Co., run by billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, said today its associate firm, Jeddah Economic Co., had signed a $1.23 billion deal with the Bin Laden Group to build the world's tallest tower in Jeddah, according to an article today by Summer Said at wsj.com.
The planned tower, which will soar about 3,281 feet, will include a hotel, serviced apartments, luxury condominiums and offices and will occupy an area of 5.38 million square feet, Kingdom Holding said in a statement on the Saudi bourse website.
"This project will provide sustainable profits to Kingdom Holding shareholders," Prince Alwaleed said at a news conference in Riyadh. It "has been in discussion since four years," he said, adding that "this project is very feasible for the shareholders, and everybody is satisfied with the potential returns."
Construction on the Kingdom Tower, which will take 63 months to complete, is expected to start soon, Prince Alwaleed said. He said finances for the tower are in place, without giving any further details.
The tower would top Dubai's 2,717-foot-high Burj Khalifa, which currently is the world's tallest building. Kingdom's project will be part of the more than 57-million-square-foot Kingdom City, north of Jeddah, which overlooks the Red Sea and Obhur Creek and is expected to cost $20 billion, the article said.
The article said that "Kingdom Holding said it had signed a shareholder agreement under which Bin Laden Group would take a 16.63 percent stake in Jeddah Economic Co., which will build the tower. Kingdom will own 33.35 percent in Jeddah Economic, while 33.35 percent will be held by Abrar International Holding Co. and 16.67 percent by investor Abdurrahman Sharbatly. Bin Laden Group is the largest construction firm in Saudi Arabia and is owned by the Bin Laden family, which in the 1990s distanced itself from Osama Bin Laden."
Chicago-based Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture led an interdisciplinary team that designed the tower.
Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who owns 95 percent of Kingdom Holding, said that "building this tower in Jeddah sends a financial and economic message that should not be ignored. It has a political depth to it to tell the world that we Saudis invest in our country."
Prince Alwaleed has focused his investments on banks, hotels and media companies, building sizable stakes in firms such as Citigroup Inc., News Corp., Apple Inc. and Time Warner Inc. News Corp. owns Dow Jones & Co., publisher of The Wall Street Journal.
Over the past couple of years, the prince, who has been the Middle East's wealthiest businessman over the past 20 years, has again started seeking investors and acquisitions around the world after keeping a low profile in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the article said.
The planned tower, which will soar about 3,281 feet, will include a hotel, serviced apartments, luxury condominiums and offices and will occupy an area of 5.38 million square feet, Kingdom Holding said in a statement on the Saudi bourse website.
"This project will provide sustainable profits to Kingdom Holding shareholders," Prince Alwaleed said at a news conference in Riyadh. It "has been in discussion since four years," he said, adding that "this project is very feasible for the shareholders, and everybody is satisfied with the potential returns."
Construction on the Kingdom Tower, which will take 63 months to complete, is expected to start soon, Prince Alwaleed said. He said finances for the tower are in place, without giving any further details.
The tower would top Dubai's 2,717-foot-high Burj Khalifa, which currently is the world's tallest building. Kingdom's project will be part of the more than 57-million-square-foot Kingdom City, north of Jeddah, which overlooks the Red Sea and Obhur Creek and is expected to cost $20 billion, the article said.
The article said that "Kingdom Holding said it had signed a shareholder agreement under which Bin Laden Group would take a 16.63 percent stake in Jeddah Economic Co., which will build the tower. Kingdom will own 33.35 percent in Jeddah Economic, while 33.35 percent will be held by Abrar International Holding Co. and 16.67 percent by investor Abdurrahman Sharbatly. Bin Laden Group is the largest construction firm in Saudi Arabia and is owned by the Bin Laden family, which in the 1990s distanced itself from Osama Bin Laden."
Chicago-based Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture led an interdisciplinary team that designed the tower.
Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who owns 95 percent of Kingdom Holding, said that "building this tower in Jeddah sends a financial and economic message that should not be ignored. It has a political depth to it to tell the world that we Saudis invest in our country."
Prince Alwaleed has focused his investments on banks, hotels and media companies, building sizable stakes in firms such as Citigroup Inc., News Corp., Apple Inc. and Time Warner Inc. News Corp. owns Dow Jones & Co., publisher of The Wall Street Journal.
Over the past couple of years, the prince, who has been the Middle East's wealthiest businessman over the past 20 years, has again started seeking investors and acquisitions around the world after keeping a low profile in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the article said.
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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