Full Push for Neom City
Lee Jae-Yong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics; Chey Tae-Won, Chairman of SK Group; and the heads of other top 10 Korea-based conglomerates are projected to visit Saudi Arabia next month.
According to industry sources on Sept. 14, Won Hee-ryong, minister of land, infrastructure, and transport, is considering a visit to the Middle East next month accompanied by these corporate heads.
Initially, the government intended to organize a visit to Saudi Arabia focusing on construction company CEOs. However, it’s understood that the delegation was expanded to include the heads of the top 10 groups for a full push to secure orders for Neom City.
Neom City is a megaproject aiming to build a new city in northwest Saudi Arabia that’s 44 times larger than Seoul, spanning 26,500 km². The total project cost is a staggering 500 billion dollars (approximately 664 trillion won).
Major domestic companies like Samsung, SK, and Hyundai Motor are moving swiftly to secure orders for Neom City.
Last November, figures including Samsung’s Chairman Lee Jae-yong, SK’s Chairman Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor’s Chairman Chung Eui-sun, Doosan’s Chairman Park Jung-won, and CJ’s Chairman Lee Jae-Hyun had a meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during his visit to Korea that lasted about two hours.
Earlier this month, Yasir Othman Al-Rumayyan, known as the “Keeper of the Treasury,” the Chairman of Aramco, and President of the Saudi Wealth Fund visited Korea and met with other corporate figures including Chairman Jeong Gi-seon.