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  • Navigating the Landscape of Esports and Gaming in Saudi Arabia

    According to the Chairman of the Federation of Esports and Gaming HRH Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, the Kingdom’s aim to become a leading global hub for gaming and esports by 2030 will create over 35,000 jobs and contribute $13.3bn to the nation’s economy.

  • Saudi Arabia Has Become The Fight Capital Of The World

    Las Vegas has been the fight capital of the world for decades. It seems almost crazy to look at any other place as the destination spot for fighters, fans, and the promoters who push the events. Over the past two years, it's become clear that Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the Gulf states have taken a significant piece of the pie. So much so it's not a stretch to say Saudi Arabia has become the world's fight capital.

  • There is ‘real excitement’ among global investors about Saudi capital market, Riyadh forum is told

    Saudi Arabia’s capital market is very attractive in the eyes of global investors, and the kingdom’s authorities are pushing for more regulation to enhance the market’s accessibility and stability, with the aim of boosting confidence and to attract further international capital inflows, said panellists at the Saudi Capital Market Forum in Riyadh on Tuesday. “We’re trying to adopt the concept of enabling regulations instead of deregulations, and this is one of the things that you might find different in the Saudi development endeavour,” said Abdullah Binghannam, the deputy of financing and investment at Saudi financial regulator Capital Market Authority (CMA).

  • National portal to improve Saudi urban landscape launched

    The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) and the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing launched a national portal to improve the Saudi urban landscape. The launching ceremony was held on the sidelines of the first edition of the Global Smart City Forum 2024 in Riyadh on Monday. The two-day event is organized by SDAIA, in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing.

  • Saudi minister says energy transition behind Aramco capacity halt

    Saudi Arabia decided to halt its oil capacity expansion plans because of the energy transition, its energy minister said on Monday, adding that the kingdom has plenty of spare capacity to cushion the oil market. The Saudi government on Jan. 30 ordered state oil company Aramco (2222.SE), opens new tab to halt its oil expansion plan and to target a maximum sustained production capacity of 12 million barrels per day (bpd), 1 million bpd below a target announced in 2020, which was set to be reached in 2027.

  • Rystad Energy Analyzes Saudi Arabia’s Pause in Oil Capacity Expansion Amid Market Uncertainty: Implications for Offshore Projects and Supply Stability

    Saudi Aramco’s focus on offshore oil and gas expansion projects, including the Dammam and Berri, Marjan, and Zuluf developments, underscores its commitment to meeting production targets. However, the revised mandate necessitates a reevaluation of future investments, with potential implications for projects like Safaniya and Manifa. The decision also has implications for the composition of Saudi Arabia’s oil mix, as increased offshore volumes are expected to lead to a greater share of heavy grades. This shift underscores the importance of offshore expansion to maintain the country’s overall production levels.

  • Saudi project win caps record year

    US-based project management firm Hill International ended 2023 on a high with a major contract win in Saudi Arabia. In a joint venture with Italy’s Italferr and Spain’s Sener, the firm was awarded the contract to provide project management services for the Saudi Landbridge. The estimated $7bn railway project will connect the east and west coasts of the kingdom and is one of the region’s largest infrastructure schemes. For Hill International’s CEO Raouf Ghali (pictured), the award confirms Saudi Arabia’s position as one of the world’s most important and exciting construction markets.

  • The Rise of Saudi Arabia’s Venture Capital Ecosystem: A 5-Year Reflection

    Against the gloomy picture painted in most regions, Saudi Arabia weathered this storm with success, becoming MENA’s leading market for venture capital funding, where $1.38BN was deployed in capital to Saudi-headquartered startups in 2023. Central to this was the investment in four MEGA deal rounds, investments greater than $100M+, which were closed by Nana, Floward, Tamara, and Tabby, with the latter announcing their relocation to the Kingdom in Q4 2023. These four deals together captured 64% of the capital deployed in the Kingdom.

  • The Rise of Saudi Arabia’s Venture Capital Ecosystem: A 5-Year Reflection

    2023 was a rollercoaster year for Venture Capital. Globally, VC funding fell to $248.4B in 2023, the lowest level since 2017, while transaction volume fell by 30% YoY to 29,303 deals in 2023, a 6-year low, as reported by CB Insights. This trend was against the backdrop of stricter monetary conditions, rising inflation, and, in some regions, geopolitical instability. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region is a prime example of this; amidst rising interest rates, technological disruptions, and geopolitical tensions, the number of deals in MENA reached its lowest levels since 2018, declining by 34%, while capital deployed retreated by 23% YoY, as reported in our MAGNiTT FY 2023 MENA Venture Investment Report.

  • OPEC and Saudi spare oil production capacity

    Saudi Arabia currently holds spare capacity of 3 million barrels per day, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said, equal to about 2.9% of daily world demand according to Reuters calculations. The International Energy Agency estimates that OPEC's total spare capacity is 5.1 million bpd, of which 3.2 million bpd is held by Saudi Arabia, 1 million bpd by the UAE, 400,000 bpd by Iraq and 300,000 bpd by Kuwait.