Korea’s Samsung C&T to build modular homes in Saudi Arabia

Samsung C&T Corp., the construction and trading arm of South Korea’s top conglomerate Samsung Group, is set to build modular homes in Saudi Arabia in a joint investment with the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).

The move is likely to help Samsung win more large deals in Saudi Arabia, which is working on the Neom project to build a new cross-border city extending from the northwestern part of the oil-rich country to cover 26,500 square kilometers (10,200 square miles), and spanning 170 kilometers along the Red Sea coast. The company is already involved in the estimated $500 billion development plan.

South Korea’s Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong on Tuesday met PIF Governor Yasir Othman Al-Rumayyan in Saudi Arabia and signed a deal on cooperation between Samsung and the sovereign wealth fund, which managed $620 billion in assets as of the end of the first quarter of 2022, according to the ministry on Wednesday. The ministry has yet to unveil further details such as the value of the construction.

In November last year, Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s crown prince and prime minister, clinched $30 billion in bilateral deals with South Korea when he visited Seoul, including a memorandum of understanding on cooperation for the modular homes.

Samsung is set to build and operate modular homes and construction facilities for the Neom project or in Riyadh with an aim to secure mega deals not only for the smart city but also for other major development projects in the Middle East.

TO CONTRIBUTE TO SAUDI VISION 2030

“South Korean companies are expanding cooperation with the PIF for various sectors such as the green hydrogen production, the Qiddiya project, as well as housing complex and urban development plans,” Won told the governor, referring to the entertainment mega project to be established in Riyadh.

“We hope South Korean companies with abundant information and communication technology and urban development experience can contribute to realizing Saudi Vision 2030 by participation in the Red Sea and Qiddiya projects,” Won stressed.

Saudi Arabia set a strategic framework to be achieved by 2030 to reduce its dependence on oil, diversify its economy and develop public service sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, recreation and tourism.

Won also made a keynote presentation on smart city cooperation between the two countries at a real estate forum hosted by the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing.

The South Korean minister signed a separate deal with the ministry on a smart city cooperation execution program including a plan to hold working-level meetings in Seoul and Riyadh twice a year.

He visited the Middle East to help South Korean companies win deals in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Iraq.

Write to Eun-Jung Kim at kej@hankyung.com
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.