The Civil Engineering Contractor June 2019 | Page 14

WORLD NEWS
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is to spend
USD23-billion on four projects for its capital city
Riyadh, in an effort to make it ‘one of the world’s
most liveable cities’.
The projects include:
• 
King Salman Park: located in the heart of
Riyadh, the project will contain the Royal Art
Complex, a national theatre, an opera house, art
academies, museums and galleries
• 
S ports Boulevard: designed to encourage
exercise, the development will include 48 green
and open spaces, outdoor museums, movie
theatres and cycling, jogging and horseback
riding tracks
• Green Riyadh: this project plans to increase air
quality and reduce temperatures in the city by
increasing the green space from 1.7m 2 to 28m 2
per capita and by planting 7.5 million trees
• 
Riyadh Art: described by the Saudi Arabian
government as the ‘world’s largest government
investment in public art’, the project will create
1 000 installation artworks and landmarks,
including institutions such as museums and
theatres and created by local and international
artists across public spaces in Riyadh.
The four projects will meet the UN’s sustainable
development goals and will create 70 000 jobs
and generate investment opportunities worth
USD14-billion to local and foreign investors. Work
is due to begin in the second half of 2019. nn
UK’s Heathrow airport has revealed 18 sites around
the UK shortlisted in its search for four ‘logistics
hubs’ intended to facilitate offsite manufacturing and
just-in-time delivery of materials and components
for an expected GBP14-billion expansion of the
world’s seventh busiest airport.
Heathrow conceived the hubs idea to push
construction offsite and keep the movement of
freight and workers to a minimum in congested
southern England. It also wants to spread the
economic benefit of what it calls ‘Britain’s largest
infrastructure project’ around the country.
It said the approach will ‘revolutionise’ the way
Britain builds major infrastructure. On the shortlist
are a diverse range of businesses and sites, including the
UK’s biggest contractor Balfour Beatty at an industrial
estate at Tamworth in the West Midlands, Tata Steel
UK at its works in Deeside, North Wales and engineer
Babcock at its Rosyth Dockyard in Scotland.
Northern Ireland construction firm Graham is
proposing former Michelin tyre factory in Ballymena,
while Tarmac is pitching its Thrislington quarry
in Country Durham. Associated British Ports has
thrown the Port of Cardiff, South Wales, into the
ring as well.
Heathrow’s controversial expansion plans, approved
by the UK Parliament in June 2018 but still the subject
of multifaceted opposition, include a new 3.5km
runway, which will be the first new runway in the
southeast of England since the Second World War. nn
Heathrow’s controversial expansion plans are still the
subject of multifaceted opposition and include a new
3.5km runway – the first in 70 years.
12 | CEC June 2019
Saudi Arabia has announced projects worth
USD23-billion to upgrade capital city Riyadh.
www.civilsonline.co.za