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  • Alstom Wins $540M Contract for Saudi Battery-Power Tramway

    Alstom has won a $540 million contract to construct the world's longest battery-powered tramway in Saudi Arabia. The catenary-free, 22.4-km project will feature 20 Citadis B battery trams manufactured by the French rolling stock manufacturer, and 17 new stations.  Alstom’s contract includes designing a comprehensive system for the tram project as well as integrating, installing, testing and commissioning its battery-powered system. The firm will deliver power supply, signaling, communication and depot equipment as well as providing full tram maintenance for at least 10 years.

  • Sony ME hosts event to empower Saudi content creators

    Sony Middle East organised an event in Riyadh aimed at providing a platform for Saudi content creators to network, share insights, and enhance their skills. The boom in content creation has transformed media consumption in Saudi Arabia, with a growing number of individuals using platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram to produce and publish content. This has led to a rise on competition, driving creators to seek innovation and improve content quality. The convention by Sony Middle East featured workshops and discussions led by experts, focusing on fostering collaboration among influencers and exploring the core of creativity.

  • Samsung, Siemens and GE among global project developers in race for Saudi power plants

    Siemens, Samsung and ACWA Power are among 21 global utility project firms to prequalify for the development of four power plants across Saudi Arabia. In a statement, Saudi Power Procurement Co. also revealed French-owned EDF, Kepco from Korea, and Japan’s Marubeni were in contention for the contracts, as well as TAQA from the UAE and US-based GE. These projects are Rumah-1 and Rumah-2 in the Central region and Nairyah-1 and Nairyah-2 in the Eastern region, with a capacity of 1,800 megawatts per plant. According to SPPC, the plants will operate using natural gas combined cycle technology, incorporating provisions for carbon capture unit readiness. Additionally, these projects align with the Saudi Green Initiative, aiming to attain net-zero greenhouse gases through a circular carbon economy approach by 2060.

  • Royal Commission for AlUla CEO arrested for abuse of power and money laundering

    Eng. Amr Al-Madani, CEO of the Royal Commission for AlUla, was arrested over charges of misuse of authority and money laundering involving SR206 million.

    The partners of Al-Madani in a company were also arrested, according to an official source at the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha). Al-Madani was detained for his involvement in crimes of abuse of power and money laundering through obtaining contracts for the National Talents Company from King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy in an illegal manner.

  • Saudi Arabia Reveals Grand Ambition to Become a Global Biotech Powerhouse by 2040

    Saudi Arabia, another powerhouse in the region, has recently launched a National Biotech Strategy (the Strategy) with an ambition to become MENA’s leading biotech hub by 2030 and a global biotech leader with a far-reaching impact in biomanufacturing and medical innovation by 2040.

  • Saudi Arabia on the road to cloud-powered digital transformation

    In parallel, the government has been pouring resources into building the necessary infrastructure. A testament to this is the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology’s 2021 initiative, where an $18 billion investment was announced to establish a vast network of data centers across the Kingdom. This bold move has garnered global attention, drawing investments from tech giants, with Google Cloud Region inaugurating its Saudi-based operations in November 2023. The strategic positioning of the Kingdom is more than just establishing infrastructure; it is about setting global benchmarks for cloud operating models.

  • KAUST unveils blueprint for affordable solar cells to power Saudi Arabia and beyond

    Perovskite/silicon tandem technology combines the strengths of two materials – perovskite's efficient light absorption and silicon's long-term stability – to achieve record-breaking efficiency. In 2023, the De Wolf laboratory reported two world records for power conversion efficiency, with five achieved globally in the same year, showing rapid progress in perovskite/silicon tandem technology.

  • How Saudi Arabia is unlocking the power of the blue economy

    Many of these huge projects focus on core fundamentals of the blue economy, namely regenerative tourism and maritime logistics. Amaala, which is part of Red Sea Global, and Sindalah which is part of NEOM, represent the largest regenerative tourism investments in the world and have the ambitious aim to go beyond environmental protection to enhance their natural assets. The scale of these ambitions requires massive investments in renewable energy, sustainable materials, innovative design, and ecosystem restoration.

  • How Saudi Arabia is unlocking the power of the blue economy

    Saudi’s coastline is the eighth largest community of coral reefs in the world, covering around 6,600 square kilometres, as well as 204 square kilometers of mangrove forests, and hundreds of kilometres of seagrass meadows. It is also home to more than 20 newly-discovered “blue holes” in the Red Sea.

  • Rayan Alyusufi joins The 966 to discuss the Kingdom’s public diplomacy, ‘sharp power,’ and evolution

    The 966 speaks with Rayan Alyusufi, a young Saudi researcher in public diplomacy and international communication to discuss the Kingdom’s public diplomacy, "sharp power," and evolution of Saudi as an emerging diplomatic player. Rayan is a PHD Candidate at Bournemouth University in the United Kingdom. Recently, Rayan wrote a blog post entitled "The Transformation of Saudi Arabia’s Public Diplomacy" for the University of Southern California’s Center for Public Diplomacy website that discussed Saudi Arabia's "significant influence in the international arena."