Latest news with #Mudaifer
Newsweek
19-05-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
New Boss Named for World's Biggest Construction Project
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Saudi Arabia's Neom, the world's largest construction project, has appointed Aiman Al-Mudaifer as its new CEO to fast-track flagship developments including The Line, the cornerstone of the plan for a city more than 100 miles long. Newsweek has contacted Neom and the Saudi Media Ministry for comment. Why It Matters The project is part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's bet on shifting Saudi Arabia from dependence on oil exports to new growth alongside other Gulf and Arab governments that are pouring capital into mega-projects, showcasing cutting-edge technologies to lure global investors and polish their international images. Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates pledged multi-billion investments during President Donald Trump's visit last week. Athletes compete during Stage 3 of NEOM Titan Desert Saudi Arabia on Day Nineteen of the NEOM Beach Games on November 21, 2024 in Neom, Saudi Arabia. Athletes compete during Stage 3 of NEOM Titan Desert Saudi Arabia on Day Nineteen of the NEOM Beach Games on November 21, 2024 in Neom, Saudi NEOM Beach Games What To Know Neom announced Mudaifer as its CEO and Managing Director, elevating the interim leader who has served as Acting CEO since 2024 and drawing on his experience in leading the Saudi Public Investment Fund's (PIF) real estate division since 2018 to drive the giga-project forward following the departure of longtime CEO Nadhmi al-Nasr. Neom has faced repeated budget overruns and delays, with Mudaifer recently launching a full review of project goals and priorities, according to The Financial Times. The PIF, Neom's principal backer, signed multi-billion-dollar deals with U.S. asset managers following Trump's visit, according to media reports. The International Monetary Fund has estimated that oil must be at nearly $100 a barrel for the kingdom to balance its funding of Vision 2030 economic transformation. Saudi Arabia, once a major supplier of crude oil to the United States, has seen a decline in its exports, with price per barrel of little over $62 for benchmark U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude, according to Reuters. What People Are Saying NEOM in statement: "Over the past months, Al-Mudaifer has remained focused on maintaining operational continuity, improving efficiencies and accelerating progress across NEOM's strategic projects and regions." Gulf economist and consultant Justin Alexander told Newsweek: "The confirmation of Aiman Al-Mudaifer as CEO is a positive development for NEOM. He is understood to be a practical and implementation-minded engineer, which is what the project needs after a period that has been too focused on grand concepts, with weak cost management." Robert Mogielnicki, Senior Resident Scholar at The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington wrote in March: "Smart, sustainable spending on high-priority projects and initiatives will be crucial for regional governments, especially amid a period of subdued or declining oil prices. Saudi Arabia's social and economic transformation agenda is particularly ambitious and expensive. Saudi officials have started to adjust expectations." What Happens Next Observers will be watching to see whether NEOM's new leader can deliver on near-term milestones as the project faces logistical hurdles and allegations of human-rights abuses.
Zawya
23-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Saudi Arabia's NEOM to appoint acting CEO to permanent role, sources say
RIYADH/DUBAI: Saudi Arabia is to officially appoint Aiman al-Mudaifer as the chief executive of NEOM, the $500 billion mega-project at the heart of the kingdom's drive to diversify away from oil, two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. Mudaifer has been NEOM's acting CEO since November, succeeding Nadhmi al-Nasr, the long-time former chief of the Red Sea urban and industrial development project that is nearly the size of Belgium. Saudi Arabia's wealth fund PIF was not immediately available for comment. The kingdom, the world's top oil exporter, has been facing mounting pressure to cut spending or raise debt after a plunge in crude prices, complicating plans to fund its expensive agenda to wean its economy off hydrocarbons dependence. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known as MbS, has been pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into development projects via the PIF, with NEOM being central to his Vision 2030 plan to create new engines of economic growth beyond oil. But some of the projects have had to be downsized due to rising costs, including The Line, a futuristic city between mirrored walls extending 170 km (106 miles) into the desert within NEOM, which is due to house nearly nine million people. One of the sources said that Mudaifer, who will be appointed in the coming weeks, has deep knowledge of NEOM and has been involved in PIF monitoring the mega-project's developments for some time. The source added that this was a sign that PIF is taking greater oversight over NEOM. "It certainly makes sense to have careful oversight of a vast initiative such as NEOM. The danger has always been that the logic of developing a well-located but under-utilized part of the kingdom could be undermined by over-ambitious planning and poor delivery," said Justin Alexander, director of Khalij Economics. "Enhanced oversight by PIF, including through the installation of an experienced CEO to manage it, should help," he added. Mudaifer, who led the Local Real Estate Division at PIF since 2018, was assigned last year with overseeing the operational continuity of NEOM, which has seen some of its schemes scaled back. At his role in PIF, al-Mudaifer oversaw all local real estate investments and infrastructure projects, and he is a board member of several prominent companies in the kingdom, NEOM said in November. "Strong coordination with the PIF will be important at a time that projects are being prioritised and there are so many moving parts, including related to the oil price," said Monica Malik, chief economist at Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank. Oil prices have tumbled to near four-year lows in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff announcements, putting a strain on the Saudi budget. The IMF has previously said that oil must be at nearly $100 a barrel for the kingdom to balance its budget as it spends massively on funding its Vision 2030 economic transformation program. (Reporting by Pesha Magid in Riyadh and Federico Maccioni in Dubai, Writing by Nayera Abdallah, Editing by Louise Heavens, David Evans and Deepa Babington)
Zawya
22-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Saudi Arabia's NEOM to appoint Aiman al-Mudaifer as permanent CEO, sources say
Saudi Arabia is to officially appoint Aiman al-Mudaifer as the chief executive of NEOM, the $500 billion mega-project at the heart of the kingdom's drive to diversify away from oil, two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. Mudaifer has been NEOM's acting CEO since November, succeeding Nadhmi al-Nasr, the long-time former chief of the Red Sea urban and industrial development project that is nearly the size of Belgium. Saudi Arabia's wealth fund PIF was not immediately available for comment. The kingdom, the world's top oil exporter, has been facing mounting pressure to cut spending or raise debt after a plunge in crude prices, complicating plans to fund its expensive agenda to wean its economy off hydrocarbons dependence. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known as MbS, has been pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into development projects via the PIF, with NEOM being central to his Vision 2030 plan to create new engines of economic growth beyond oil. But some of the projects have had to be downsized due to rising costs, including The Line, a futuristic city between mirrored walls extending 170 km (106 miles) into the desert within NEOM, which is due to house nearly nine million people. One of the sources said that Mudaifer, who will be appointed in the coming weeks, has deep knowledge of NEOM and has been involved in PIF monitoring the mega-project's developments for some time. The source added that this was a sign that PIF is taking greater oversight over NEOM. Mudaifer, who led the Local Real Estate Division at PIF since 2018, was assigned last year with overseeing the operational continuity of NEOM, which has seen some of its schemes scaled back. At his role in PIF, al-Mudaifer oversaw all local real estate investments and infrastructure projects, and he is a board member of several prominent companies in the kingdom, NEOM said in November. (Reporting by Pesha Magid in Riyadh and Federico Maccioni in Dubai, Writing by Nayera Abdallah, Editing by Louise Heavens and David Evans)
Zawya
03-03-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Is Saudi Arabia richer in minerals than oil?
When Saudi Aramco decided to evaluate itself a few years ago, it came up with a figure close to $2 trillion given the enormous oil deposits the Gulf Kingdom sits on. Fast forward to 2022, the value of the Kingdom's mineral resources was estimated at around SAR 5 trillion ($1.33 trillion), which has now soared to around SAR9.3 trillion ($2.48 trillion), thanks to massive discoveries over the past three years. 'The Kingdom has made large strides in the development of its mining sector,' Deputy Saudi Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Khalid Al-Mudaifer was quoted last week as saying by the Saudi daily Al-Madina. 'This was coupled with a large investment flow into the investments along with an unprecedented expansion in mining exploration has boosted the Kingdom's mineral wealth from SAR 5 trillion to SAR9.3 trillion.' Mudaifer, who was addressing a promotion seminar on Saudi in the US Miami city, said a landmark mining law introduced by Riyadh five years ago boosted the number of mining investment firms from 6 in 2020 to 133 at the end of 2023. Last month, the Industry and Mineral Resources Ministry said it has completed nearly 90 percent of a survey of a targeted area of around 400,000 square kilometres (sq km). Over the past two years, the Kingdom announced that exploration operations have resulted in significant discoveries of gold, zinc and copper in the Arabian Shield region, which exceeds one third of Saudi Arabia's total area. In 2024, Oil Minister Prince Abdul Aziz bin Salman revealed at the Future Minerals Forum in the capital Riyadh that significant quantities of uranium and titanium have been discovered in various explored areas. He also confirmed that Saudi Arabia has 'an abundance of metals and minerals and is developing the structure and partnerships that would fully exploit them. The last major contracts awarded by Saudi Arabia to mine prospectors were in November, when six large mining sites covering an area of nearly 850 sq km were offered to local and foreign investors. These awards boosted the total number of mining and mineral exploration licenses issued by the Kingdom over the past five years to nearly 2,295. These include more than 200 for mining exploration, 42 for prospecting minerals and 23 surplus mineral resources licenses. The Vision 2030 economic transformation plan aims to more than quadruple the mining sector's contribution to GDP from around $17 billion in 2019 to $75 billion in 2035. When Saudi Aramco concluded that valuation, experts said it was based on an oil price of $8 a barrel and crude reserves of about 258 billion barrels. It was not clear how much of those reserves could be extracted. (Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)
Zawya
27-02-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Saudi targets $100bln mining investment
Saudi Arabia has set a target to attract investments of around 375 billion Saudi riyals ($100 billion) to its mining sector as part of its Vision 2030, an official has said. The world's largest oil exporter has already managed to attract nearly SAR75 billion ($20 billion) to mining projects since it introduced a landmark law to incentivise investors, said Khalid Al-Mudaifer, Deputy Industry and Mineral Resources Minister. 'The Kingdom has announced several investment opportunities in the mining sector with a value of nearly SAR375 billion until 2035,' Mudaifer told a promotion seminar on Saudi Arabia in the US Miami city. Quoted by the Saudi daily Al-Madina on Thursday, Mudaifer said Saudi Arabia's drive to develop that sector has largely paid off, with the number of mining companies jumping from six in 2020 to 133 at the end of 2023. Spending on mining exploration exceeded SAR1.33 billion ($355 million), he added. (Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon) (
