Saudi Arabia’s Ardara, which is backed by sovereign wealth vehicle the Public Investment Fund (PIF), has announced more details on its plans to develop assets at the Alwadi project in the kingdom’s southwestern Abha region. As part of the project’s initial phase, Ardara will develop a 180-key five-star hotel, a 245-room four-star hotel, 40 branded residences, 42 villas, 62 apartments, a retail space spanning 4,500 square metres (sq m) and other associated infrastructure. Turki Bin Talal bin Abdulaziz, Aseer region governor and Ardara chairman, made the announcement earlier this week at the second Aseer Investment Forum in Abha. Ardara also signed several agreements with local and international firms that will serve the project. The first agreement was signed with US-based hotel operator Hilton to operate a Waldorf Astoria hotel within the development. Ardara also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Al-Khobar-headquartered real estate firm Sumou Holding to develop residential, hospitality and entertainment projects valued up to $266.7m in the upcoming phases of the Al-Wadi development. Other MoUs signed include one with Jeddah-based Sedco Capital to manage an investment fund worth $0.266bn to develop a mixed-use project in Abha and another with Southern Province Cement Company to supply eco-friendly green cement for developments across the region.  In October last year Ardara had awarded two contracts for project design on its Alwadi project. The contracts were awarded to US-based Parsons Corporation and OBMI International. The PIF established Ardara in October 2023. The Alwadi project will cover 2.5 million square metres and will have five districts, including residential, hospitality and recreational developments, in its first phase. Abha is the capital of Aseer Province, which Saudi Arabia plans to develop via a SR50bn ($13bn) investment plan.  In October 2022  the PIF plans to contribute SR25bn to develop the region. This announcement came a month after Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud launched a $13.3bn strategy to grow tourism in the province. The strategy aims to attract 10 million domestic and international visitors to Aseer by 2030.   For registration as a supplier: https://ardara.sa/ar/partner-with-us-registration   (ICE RIYADH)

Fonte notizia: Meed