May 2022

After five years under construction and a soft opening in 2018, King Salman Global Maritime Industries Complex has finished construction. Built at a total cost of 4.3 billion USD, the Arab Gulf complex is the largest shipyard in the world, spanning a staggering five square kilometers, fifteen piers, and a half-dozen drydocks.

The completion of the shipyard is one of the first major industrial projects completed under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's Saudi Vision 2030 economic program. Jointly operated by several international firms, including shipping giant Bahri (formerly known as the National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia), Saudi Aramco, Emirati oil rig construction firm Lamprell, and the world's third-largest shipbuilding firm, South Korean industrial giant Hyundai Heavy Industries, the complex is expected to add some 17 billion USD to the Saudi economy, while employing 80,000 locals and reducing imports by 12 billion USD annually. The shipyard will provide services up and down the maritime value chain, including oil rig support, ship repair, oil rig construction, and shipbuilding construction. The shipyard is expected to focus on the construction of oil rigs and Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC). Now that the shipyard is fully operational, it can support the construction of up to four oil rigs and up to 40 vessels, including three VLCCs, per year, while providing support services for over 260 different maritime products.

KSGMIC is also expected to serve as a locus for future industrial developments in Ras al-Khair, where it is located, by adding to the value chains already located there. KSGMIC is expected to quickly emerge as the primary customer for for Ras al-Khair's aluminum smelter, the largest in the world. Due to its connection to Saudi Arabia's bauxite and phosphate mines via Saudi Arabia's North-South line, KSGMIC and its support facilities are also expected to become a major regional hub for phosphate and aluminum exports. Once the Gulf Railway is completed, Ras al-Khair and KSGMIC will also be easily accessible from Jubail and Dammam (two largest Saudi cities in the Arab Gulf, and two of the fastest growing industrial developments in the country)--less than an hour away for passenger trains, and only three or so hours away for freight.

To celebrate the full opening of the complex, King Salman made one of his increasingly rare public appearances (fittingly, since the complex is named after him). Corporate representatives of Hyundai Heavy Industries, Saudi Aramco, Bahri, Lamprell and China Power Construction Group (who actually built the facility) were also invited to attend the event. In his speech, King Salman announced the KSGMIC would only be the first of several new shipyards to be built throughout the country, as Saudi Arabia looks to leverage its position at the crossroads of global trade to develop an expansive shipbuilding industry of its own.