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The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) and a consortium of French engineering companies Setec, Egis and Assystem (SEA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the 6th edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh.
Egis, which leads the consortium, said in a statement that the MOU expands the existing agreement between SEA and RCU for the infrastructure development of AlUla project.
The statement said the MoU adds to SEA’s current scope of work to create AlUla’s Infrastructure Capital Investment Unit. This will include developing and completing the entire infrastructure development cycle of AlUla, the preparation of high-quality and performing operation and maintenance (O&M) activities and developing professional capabilities.
In addition, it includes implementing innovative, digital and world-class practices, tools and methodologies to ensure performance and timely infrastructure delivery.
Over the past two years, SEA has facilitated and structured the development of AlUla’s infrastructure with a recent milestone being the inauguration of a new airport facility.
“RCU has chosen to enhance the cooperation with SEA to roll out AlUla’s infrastructure program for the next 10 years,” the statement noted.
It added that the 10-year alliance will quintuple consortium’s AlUla workforce from 40 to 200.
Located 1,100 km from Riyadh, in North-West Saudi Arabia, AlUla is spread over an area of 22,561 square km and includes a lush oasis valley, towering sandstone mountains and ancient cultural heritage sites dating back thousands of years to when the Lihyan and Nabataean kingdoms reigned. It also includes Hegra, Saudi Arabia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site.
(Writing by Senthil Palanisamy; Editing by Anoop Menon)
