Month: April 2023

The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) President Abdulaziz Al-Duailej announced on Wednesday the launch of the Al-Ahsa International Airport development and expansion project.

The airport’s capacity will be jumped by 250 percent to accommodate one million passengers annually once the project is completed.

Al-Duailej made the announcement while addressing the Al-Ahsa Forum 2030. Prince Saud Bin Naif, emir of the Eastern Province, inaugurated the forum in the presence of Governor of Al-Ahsa Prince Saud bin Talal bin Badr.

The 6th edition of the forum, with the theme of “Al-Ahsa … the Economy of the Future,” was organized by Al-Ahsa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in cooperation with Saudi Aramco, the strategic partner.

Addressing the forum, Al-Duailej said Al-Ahsa governorate is characterized by its strategic location and integrated infrastructure.

“The presence of a developed international airport will facilitate access to it and connect it with the world. Al-Ahsa International Airport achieved an estimated growth rate of 30 percent in the number of passengers and an increase in the number of flights by 6.6 percent during the year 2022 compared to 2021,” he said.

The GACA chief said that November 2022 witnessed the resumption of the first direct international flight service to Dubai with operation of Flydubai.

The Dammam Airports Company is working on offering a number of investment opportunities, considering Al-Ahsa International Airport as a strategic partner in the renaissance of development and the economy of the province and the region, due to its association with a number of important sectors such as tourism, trade and industry.

This is in addition to attracting national and foreign airlines to operate more new destinations.

Al-Duailej stated that the airport development and expansion project includes raising the capacity by 250 percent to reach one million passengers per year; building two international terminals with a total area of 3,400 square meters, and developing and improving the current domestic terminals in a way compatible with the two new international terminals in order to unify the identity of the airport.

This is in addition to increasing the operating capacity of travel check-in platforms and developing the conveyor belt and technical infrastructure systems.

source:https://www.zawya.com/en/projects/construction/saudis-al-ahsa-airports-capacity-to-jump-by-250-as-expansion-project-launched-xp3v266m

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said on Wednesday that the government is committed to the protection of workers in black sand reserves.

Speaking at the inauguration of the Egyptian Black Sand Co.’s complex in Kafr El-Sheikh, he highlighted the state’s commitment to ensuring there is no negative health impact on the workers in the complex.

El-Sisi said the idea for the project to explore the potential of the reserves emerged five years ago, and the feasibility studies took three years. The president said the project is available to the private sector for investment, adding that private companies should form groups compatible with one other in order to complete the project within two years.

The project is part of Egypt’s efforts to maximize the use of the country’s natural wealth, said Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly during a Cabinet meeting. He invited private sector institutions to establish factories focused on black sand, “which would take advantage of the country’s existing wealth.”

Black sand is rich in valuable minerals including ilmenite, zircon, magnetite, rutile and garnet, which can be used for a number of industries, such as textiles and renewable energy.

The project consists of four parts: An artificial lake with a total surface area of 83,000 square meters and a depth of 5 meters; the Tahya Misr dredger (a Dutch-made electric dredger with a dredging rate of 2,500 tons per hour); a floating plant with a total area of 2,800 square meters; and a site to collect yellow sand and impurities.

The Egyptian government discovered its black sand reserves over 90 years ago but was unable to utilize them.

The inauguration of the project was well received by the media and experts in various fields.

Ahmed Sultan, an associate expert at the Egyptian Center for Strategic Studies, elaborated on the properties of Egyptian black sand and its various uses, such as in the manufacture of ceramics, car bodies and aircraft structures.

Egypt’s reserves of black sand cover 1.3 billion cubic meters in 11 sites along 400 km.

Source:https://www.arabnews.com/node/2186171/business-economy

The Saudi Arabian government is reportedly planning to invest $38bn into the country’s gaming industry.

Most recently, the Saudi government increased its stake in Nintendo to 8.26 percent through the Public Investment Fund, the state’s sovereign wealth fund, and it also holds millions of shares in EA and Take-Two.

Savvy Gaming Group, a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund, hopes to work with the companies it has invested in to “work together on publishing, run their Esports business, or develop new IP together”, Savvy’s CEO Brian Ward told Bloomberg.

Savvy is looking to move away from esport ventures, Ward told Bloomberg, and wants to focus on asserting itself as a publisher and developer.

Bloomberg reported that Savvy started a small studio a year ago, with 45 employees. The plan for the studio is to first develop a mobile game, then a console game, according to Ward.

The government-owned company is also reportedly still planning to acquire a publisher. Bloomberg reported a budget of $13bn for the acquisition. In September last year, the state announced it planned to invest £32bn into the games industry, with £12bn of that allotted to its budget for acquiring a publisher.

Ward also responded to allegations of sportswashing, for example its use of esport ventures as a means to improve the state’s reputation. “We have on our executive team members of the LGBTQ community and women,” Ward told Bloomberg, adding the company would “absolutely hire an LGBTQ or Jewish person to lead a game studio in Saudi Arabia”.

The increasing investments made into the games industry by Saudi Arabia continue to be controversial due to its poor human rights record, which includes the criminalisation of homosexuality, fewer rights for women and the use of the death penalty. Crown Prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman has also been blamed by the CIA for the assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

Source:https://www.eurogamer.net/saudi-arabia-invests-38bn-to-establish-local-gaming-industry