Crown Prince launches masterplan of King Salman International Airport in Riyadh

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Prime Minister, Chairman of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs and Chairman of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), announced today, Nov. 28, the masterplan of King Salman International Airport (KSIA).

The airport will boost Riyadh’s position as a global logistics hub, stimulate transport, trade and tourism, and act as a bridge linking the East with the West.

The new airport will transform Riyadh to be among the top ten city economies in the world and to support the growth of Riyadh’s population to 15-20 million by 2030, the PIF said in a statement.

KSIA is expected to be one of the world’s largest airports covering an area of nearly 57 km2, allowing for six parallel runways and including the existing terminals named after King Khalid. It will also include 12 km2 of airport support facilities, residential and recreational facilities, retail outlets, and other logistics real estate.

It aims to accommodate up to 120 million travelers by 2030 and 185 million travelers, with the capacity to process 3.5 million tons of cargo, by 2050.

It will become an aerotropolis centered around a seamless customer journey, world-class efficient operations, and innovation. Riyadh’s identity and the Saudi culture will be taken into consideration in the airport’s design to ensure a unique travel experience for visitors and transit travelers.

The new airport, with sustainability at its core, will achieve LEED Platinum certification by incorporating cutting edge green initiatives into its design and will be powered by renewable energy.

The announcement comes as part of PIF’s strategy which focuses on unlocking the capabilities of promising sectors to enhance Saudi Arabia’s efforts in diversifying the economy, and it is in line with the National Transport Strategy and the Global Supply Chain Resilience Initiative. The new airport is expected to contribute SAR 27 billion annually to the Kingdom’s non-oil gross domestic product (GDP) and to create 103,000 direct and indirect jobs, in line with Vision 2030 objectives.

Introducing King Salman International Airport.

An aerotropolis centered around seamless passenger journeys, world-class efficient operations, and innovation.#KSIA#PIF pic.twitter.com/yNXbAizzFH

— Public Investment Fund (@PIF_en) November 28, 2022