LOGISTICS-
Another shipping service added to King Abdul Aziz Port: The Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) has added a new shipping service — Galex, by Emirates Shipping Line — to its King Abdul Aziz Port in Dammam in a bid to improve connectivity to East Asian ports, according to a statement earlier this week. The new service, which will offer a capacity of up to 3k TEUs, will connect the Kingdom to eight regional and international ports: China’s Shanghai, Xiamen, Dachan Bay, and Qingdao, Malaysia’s Klang, South Korea’s Busan, Oman’s Sohar, and the UAE’s Khorfakkan.
PROCUREMENT-
#1- Group Five Pipe will supply steel pipes for the Ras Al Khair water transmission system in Riyadh under a SAR 3 bn contract with state water provider Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC), it said in a disclosure to Tadawul yesterday. The agreement — which spans a period of 22 months — will see the pipemaker manufacture spiral-welded steel pipes for the transmission system providing water from Ras Al Khair to Riyadh.
#2- Dammam-based steel producer East Pipes will also manufacture and supply steel pipes to SWCC under a SAR 230 mn contract, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul yesterday. No further details were provided.
HEALTHCARE-
Al Modawat Specialized Medical will purchase an MRI scanner from medical device manufacturer and distributor Cigalah Healthcare under a SAR 4.4 mn contract, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul yesterday. The procurement and installation period has been set at six months. The contract also includes a three-year warranty and an additional seven-year maintenance period.
REAL ESTATE-
Mulkia Investment to acquire new real estate property for its Gulf REIT fund: Gulf Real estate REIT’s fund manager, Mulkia Investment, has signed an agreement to acquire a new mixed-use residential and commercial tower in Riyadh for SAR 200 mn, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul yesterday. The acquisition comes in a bid to diversify the geographical distribution of the properties under the fund, and is expected to have a “positive effect” on the fund’s revenues, the disclosure said.
TRANSPORT-
Saudi + Bahrain sign MoUs on transport, logistics: Transport and Logistics Minister Saleh AlJasser signed two MoUs with Bahraini counterpart Mohamed bin Thamir AlKaabi to bolster joint cooperation in transportation and logistics, state news agency SPA reported.
POULTRY-
Ukraine’s MHP gets greenlight for poultry farm near Riyadh: Ukraine’s largest poultry producer and exporter MHP has obtained approval from the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine to set up a SAR 200 mn poultry farm near Riyadh under a joint venture with local food group Tanmiah ’s subsidiary, Desert Hills for Veterinary Services (DVH), Poultry World reported yesterday.
Background: The approval comes months after DVH signed a shareholder agreement with MP for the poultry farm, which will have an initial capacity of 1 mn parent stock to produce c. 175 mn hatching eggs a year. The JV — in which DVH will hold a majority 55% share — is looking to develop a state-of-the-art hatchery and poultry feed mill to realize its targets. Both firms signed the MoU for the project back in February 2023.
The Kingdom just hit a poultry production high: Local poultry production reached a record high of 100 mn kg in February, state news agency SPA reported yesterday. Dairy giant Almarai plans to spend SAR 7 bn on poultry expansion as part of a SAR 18 bn strategic plan over the next five years to maximize sales.