Red Sea Development to offer off-plan villas for sale by next year: official

Ahmad Darwish, Chief of Staff at The Red Sea Development Company

The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) is expected to launch the sale of off-plan villas in the Red Sea mega project as of next year, said Ahmad Darwish, Chief of Staff at TRSDC in an interview.

“Phase 1 will not offer lots of villas for sale, as the company is still in the process of building façade designs and providing the project services,” Darwish said, expecting stronger demand by 2030.

The real estate developer has so far mulled memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with 11 hotels; however, the relevant details will be disclosed upon signing agreements with hotel operators.

As for the Phase 1, Darwish indicated that 60 kilometers (km) of the 80 km road network were finalized. Additionally, four resorts - in the desert as well as the islands area - and the project airport will be completed and open for visitors by 2022-end. Moreover, the coastal village residential area, which will include staff housing, hospitals, schools and houses, will also be completed during the first phase of the project.

Phase 2 – set to be completed by 2023 - will include the 4 km main island, in which there are 80% of hotels, in addition to resorts, entertainment hubs and logistics facilities.

The project targets to attract 300,000 tourists by end of Phase 1; 50% are Saudis and GCC citizens, and the other 50% will include other tourists from Europe, US and Asia.

The Red Sea project will stand as a private economic hub, which is currently under study by the Saudi authorities for a potential launch, Darwish added.

In Feb. 2019, the real estate developer announced the start of the project construction works. Upon the finalization of all phases, 22 islands will be developed (out of over 90 islands) and over 70,000 job opportunities will be provided.

The project is seen to drive economic diversification in the Kingdom by attracting around 1 million tourists per year and contributing SAR 22 billion to the gross domestic product (GDP), according to data compiled by Argaam.