Saudi Arabia plans to establish 5 special economic zones, unveil details soon: Al-Falih

Khalid Al-Falih, Minister of Investment

Saudi Arabia plans to establish four to five special economic zones that will provide incentives for capital owners to invest in diverse sectors, including manufacturing, biotechnology and cloud computing, Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih said.

On the sidelines of a press conference on the National Investment Strategy (NIS), Al-Falih said that details on the launch dates and locations of these zones will be announced in the coming months, after obtaining final approvals.

Plans include a logistics zone at Riyadh airport and a special economic zone in King Abdullah Financial District. Also on the anvil are two to three other zones, which will include logistics plants, with one located in King Abdullah Economic City.

The zone will allow a degree of flexibility with regard to Customs exemptions on corporate income and government fees, along with relaxation of some labor regulations.

The economic zones will be under the management of an independent regulation by the Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority (ECZA).

Al-Falih said economic zones differ from economic cities, which were established and faced challenges.

King Abdullah Economic City is one of the successful economic cities, as it was able to attract industries, he noted. This city will be completed by granting it regulatory advantages such as tax and Customs incentives.

The minister also pointed to the transfer of some of Saudi Aramco’s businesses to Jazan, which helped in completing the infrastructure and operating refineries, in addition to the presence of one of the largest power plants in the Kingdom, and titanium and iron plants.

He also noted that a Chinese firm is building a petrochemical plant in Jazan.

He added that Jubail and Yanbu are economic cities in terms of independence of governance, infrastructure, government spending, and success with building basic industries.

Jubail and Yanbu will be completed by excluding them from some basic legislation and adhering to international agreements, he indicated.

He affirmed the Kingdom's determination to build competitive production assets worldwide in new and promising sectors and to complement the previously established infrastructure and existing assets.

Saudi Arabia seeks to attract major and pioneering companies in various sectors, in addition to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurship companies.

He stressed that attracting capital is not difficult for the Kingdom, as it will find its way to contribute to financing SAR 12 trillion, whether through lending or shares directly.

The country also aims to recover some Saudi capital that did not find an opportunity in the Kingdom previously, Al-Falih said.