New business partnership promises to renovate Saudi Real Estate
Inside Saudi provides readers in the City and beyond with insights from Saudi Arabia, one of the fast growing markets in the world. Each week we’ll bring you exclusive interviews, news you can use and spotlight the companies making things happen in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia’s population is growing, and growing fast. According to the World Population Review, the country’s population currently stands at 34.81 million people, and is projected to expand to 40 million over the next decade. Meanwhile, Savills predicts that the population of the Saudi capital, Riyadh, will reach 9.2 million residents by 2033, when it will be one of the world’s fastest growing cities alongside conurbations such as Mumbai, Manila and Guangzhou.
Amid this rapid growth, Saudi Arabia’s booming real estate market continues to attract new international investors and businesses. On 1 October, Progetto CMR International, a holding company of the Milan-based integrated design company Progetto CMR Group, announced that it had signed a joint venture with the Saudi Investment Company (SICO) – a real estate development company headquartered in Riyadh. Together, the shareholders of the two corporations have agreed to establish Progetto CMR Saudi, which will be based in Riyadh and act as the regional office of Progetto CMR. Progetto CMR International will hold a 51% stake in Progetto CMR Saudi, while SICO will hold the remaining 49%.
The new partnership promises to bring global expertise to the Saudi real estate market and assist the country in achieving the goals of its Vision 2030 programme. Progetto CMR Saudi will operate in the field of integrated design within the Saudi market, utilising Progetto CMR’s extensive international experience and SICO’s knowledge of the Saudi market.
Progetto CMR International is comprised of several companies within the Progetto CMR Group. These different companies – Progetto CMR, Sportium, Progetto Design & Build, Bimfactory, Agevola 360, Dontstop Architettura, InFire, EnergySave and Stain Engineering – specialise in architecture, engineering, design, space creation and specialised consulting. By maintaining such a wide range of specialised companies, Progetto CMR International is able to provide effective solutions for every phase of any real estate project. In 2023, Progetto CMR International reported consolidated revenues of €45 million and a profit of €2.4 million.
SICO was founded in 2005 and has since become one of the leading real estate development companies in Saudi Arabia. In particular, the company specialises in the development and leasing of commercial properties, including retail parks and office spaces. The company also uses its expertise to provide comprehensive consulting services, which help firms to maximise their investment returns and efficiently manage real estate projects.
The Saudi-headquartered company has already accomplished several impressive projects within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In addition to several projects within Riyadh, these include the Automoto shopping centre in Al-Khobar and the Al Muzahmiyah Mall – the first shopping centre in the city of Al Muzahmiyah, which lies 50 kilometres to the west of Riyadh.
Now, the joint venture agreed between SICO and Progetto CMR International will allow both parties to expand and enhance their operations in the Saudi real estate market.
Sultan Al Shathri, a Board Member of SICO, expressed his excitement at the prospects of the joint venture, saying in a press release that the partnership with Progetto CMR International “aligns perfectly with our vision to innovate and expand within the Saudi real estate market.” He added: “By leveraging our local expertise and Progetto CMR’s global experience in integrated design, we are confident that Progetto CMR Saudi will set new standards in the industry and contribute significantly to the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objectives”.
In the same press release, Gabriele Cerminara, General Manager of Progetto CMR International, echoed Mr Al Shathri’s excitement and expressed his firm’s commitment to “seizing business opportunities in a market…that shows great potential for development.”
Mr Cerminara announced that his company is “delighted to embark on this business challenge with Saudi Investment Company, which shares our business model: a company capable of expressing differentiated and vertical skills through the group’s companies, but which acts as a single point of contact for clients for the realisation of all phases of a real estate project”.