Amaala project, an ultra-luxury destination along Saudi Arabia’s north western coast, could raise up to 10 billion riyals in 2022, according to its CEO John Pagano, who spoke to Bloomberg on the sidelines of Arabian Travel Market in Dubai.

"The numbers haven't yet been finalised, with the amount of debt likely to be in the range of $5-10 billion," Bloomberg reported citing Pagano.

The project is in line with the kingdom's Vision 2030, which aims to reduce the country’s dependence on oil and develop public service sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, recreation, and tourism.

Pagano was appointed as CEO of Amaala in January 2021. He is also the CEO of The Red Sea Development Co (TRSDC), another luxury project developer.

The 4,155 square kilometre year-round destination will include 2,800 hotel keys and more than 900 private residential villas, apartments, and estate homes, alongside 200 high-end retail establishments, fine dining, wellness, and recreational facilities.

Last month, TRSDC had raised a 14.12 billion-riyal ($3.77 billion) 'green' loan from four Saudi banks for 16 new hotels.

Amaala and The Red Sea Projects, both fully backed by the PIF, are complementary in nature and are firmly committed to delivering on Saudi Arabia’s luxury tourism ambition, as well as protecting and actively enhancing the country’s natural environment.

(Writing by Seban Scaria seban.scaria@refinitiv.com; editing by Anoop Menon)

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