SR20 Billion allotted for Makkah metro

An amount of SR20 billion has been allotted for the execution of the first phase of a metro network in the holy city of Makkah, Mayor Osama Al-Bar announced yesterday. "Work is currently going on in the blueprint of the project. Six months after that we will start signing contracts for the execution of the project," he told Saudi business daily Al-Eqtisadiah. He said the network will cover all parts of Makkah and will facilitate transport to the city center and the Grand Mosque. Al-Bar expected Makkah to attract investments of more than SR200 billion in the coming two years and said government and private development projects worth about SR100 billion were currently being implemented. "Makkah is a safe haven for investment," he added. He said among others, the ongoing development projects in Makkah include the project of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosque King Abdullah for the development of the holy city, which was being directly financed by the Finance Ministry away from the budgets of the government departments concerned. He explained that the project consists of axial and ring roads and transport stations. "A budget of SR23 billion has been allotted for the implementation of the first phase of the projects," he added. The mayor said about 3,000 real estate units have been expropriated for King Abdullah's expansion of the Grand Mosque for which compensations of more than SR40 billion were paid. He said the expropriated real estate was estimated at SR550,000 per sq. meter, which is equivalent to $18,000 per sq. foot. "This is among the highest rates in the world," he said.