Six Flags Qiddiya (Saudi Arabia)
Views: 63,282 Subscribe

During the Qiddiya presentation as part of the blooloop V-Expo, the project was discussed as a whole with Six Flags being talked about mostly at the end but it was mainly just recapping what has already been announced.

Despite that here's a new video showing a current look at the ground work:

http://blooloop.com/news/qiddiya-update-new-video/

This week Qiddiya will be sharing an update on the project: https://twitter.com/qiddiya/status/1315282496150437888

Construction has not been halted but the financial implications of the pandemic on Saudi Arabia in this article are bleak. The oil price crash and increased costs are pushing them to work faster to fill the budget deficits but they are throwing money at everything and it won't be long before they end up in a bad situation.

This desert kingdom is pushing ahead with multibillion-dollar plans to build a spate of new cities despite the coronavirus pandemic and depressed oil prices, betting that projects closely associated with the crown prince will kick-start its economic recovery.

“Overall, the direction from the crown prince was to press on and move as fast as we can and as hard as we can with the projects, no slowdowns on anything," Mr. Alqurashi told a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event last month in remarks reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. “The country is determined, our projects are pretty much on track and nothing will slow them down."

Prince Mohammed is in a rush. As the world pivots away from hydrocarbons, his isolated, oil-dependent kingdom risks deeper economic trouble unless it adapts. Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product shrank 1% in the first quarter, before the full impact of collapsing oil prices and the pandemic’s hit to global demand was felt. The International Monetary Fund expects it to contract 6.8% overall this year.

In the desert just outside Riyadh, the scale of Saudi Arabia’s ambitions are evident at the Qiddiya site, where an 18-hole golf course and equestrian facilities alongside hotels, shops and entertainment venues are planned by 2023. Dust spews into the air as jackhammers crush limestone hills into rocks that are then dumped to fill giant chasms in a 150-foot-high escarpment. Construction vehicles even out the plateau below where a racetrack and water park are meant to be built.

Qiddiya Chief Executive Michael Reininger, an American who worked on resort developments for Walt Disney Co., said the current economic situation didn’t affect future plans or strategy, with more than $260 million in contracts awarded since February. “Qiddiya has proudly sustained a ‘business as usual’ approach over the last few months," he said by email, “with work continuing as normal."

Sources: https://www.livemint.com/news/world/saudi-crown-prince-barrels-ahead-with-big-projects-to-boost-economy-11598503255746.html and https://www.instagram.com/p/CEg97ESlWIW/

Has anyone heard anything about this project recently? I can't find much that is recent and all Saudi Arabia projects seem to be very, very quiet at the moment.

The most recent things I can find are concept art and layouts which don't seem all that new but haven't been shared here before.

The project is located in the Qiddiya region, southwest of the city of Riyadh, one hour away from King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, and the project will serve as the capital of entertainment, culture and arts

The city will also contain a number of records that will break records, such as:
* The fastest roller coaster in the world
* The tallest landing tower (Drop Tower) in the world
* The largest amusement park in the world

Source: https://www.sayidaty.net/node/1112781/%D8%A3%D8%B3%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D9%88%D9%85%D8%AC%D8%AA%D9%85%D8%B9/%D8%AB%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%81%D8%A9-%D9%88%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%88%D9%85/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%86%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%81%D9%8A%D9%87%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%B1-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85#photo/1

RIYADH, 20 July, 2020: The Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC) has continued to achieve its construction targets despite the current global pandemic situation, awarding a three year major stormwater drainage, roads and bridges contract to leading Saudi firm, Shibh Al Jazira Contracting Company (SAJCO).

“Although 2020 has presented some unprecedented circumstances, Qiddiya has proudly sustained a “business as usual” protocol, signing our second major construction contract with SAJCO and achieving yet another major construction milestone for this year. The stormwater drainage, roads and bridges will provide access to all facilities and assets on the lower plateau of our site, enabling the transport of key construction materials to the various development sites within Qiddiya’s lower plateau,” said Michael Reininger, Chief Executive Officer of QIC. “Once again, we are pleased to be working with an experienced Saudi company and we look forward to announcing even more major contracts later this year”.

This agreement includes the creation of 45 kilometers of roads and seven bridges and grade-separated interchanges that will provide access from the main approach highway, deep into Qiddiya’s Resort Core with its theme parks and other attractions, towards the Motion Zone, home to world-class motor racing facilities, and to Qiddiya’s spectacular Golf and Equestrian Community with its championship courses and beautiful residential offerings. To build these roads, SAJCO will excavate 6.5 million cubic meters of earth, utilize more than 80,000 cubic meters of concrete for the bridges and associated structures and 1.2 million square meters of asphalt for the road surfaces.

The construction has begun this month and will be completed by mid-May 2023. It will take over 1,000 skilled workers to complete the task.

“Since its foundation, SAJCO has been building important infrastructure, and it makes us proud to be part of developing a national giga-project like Qiddiya and to be selected as a key partner for this significant part of the journey. Another focus for us is to aid the National Transformation Program 2020 and the Saudi Vision 2030 and we are delighted to work with Qiddiya, as the giga project that will change the entertainment and economic landscape of Saudi forever,” said Zyad W. Suleiman, CEO of SAJCO.

Source: https://qiddiya.com/en/media/press-office/qiddiya-signs-sar-700-million-major-roads-bridges-contract/

Satellite Image of the site at the beginning of the year and now

CEO Michael Reininger and our development team visited the site to check on the progress of Qiddiya’s Resort Core mass grading project, where Six Flags Qiddiya, the Speed Park, the Water Theme Park and Retail, Dining & Entertainment area will be constructed.

Source: https://twitter.com/qiddiya/status/1263482916841062401/

Not directly related to the Six Flags park in Riyadh, but nevertheless important in that context:

The rapid spread of the coronavirus across the United States has already forced amusement park operator Six Flags (NYSE: SIX) to close down its parks through mid-May (at least) and slash its dividend by two-thirds.

Today, that dividend went away entirely.

In a press release issued after the close of trading on the NYSE Wednesday, Six Flags recapped the measures it has already taken, or is in the process of taking, to give it "additional liquidity and financial flexibility" to survive the coronavirus pandemic. Among these, Six Flags will:

1. Eliminate "nearly all of its seasonal labor costs."
2. Cut the salaries of employees and executives by 25%.
3. Cease advertising and marketing activities.
4. Cut $30 million to $40 million of "additional non-labor operating costs."

Now, the company is taking further measures, which will include deferring $40 million to $50 million worth of capital projects that were scheduled to take place this year, taking on an additional $131 million in debt, and suspending both the payment of dividends and the repurchasing of stock "until the earlier of December 31, 2021, or such time as the company terminates the incremental $131 million of the new revolving credit facility commitments."

Source:
https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/six-flags-suspends-dividend-withdraws-guidance-2020-04-08