MADINAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah arrived here on Sunday on an inspection tour of Madinah province. He is expected to launch new industrial and development projects worth SR45 billion in Yanbu.
On arrival at Madinah’s Prince Muhammad bin Abdul Aziz International Airport, King Abdullah was greeted by Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif, Madinah Gov. Prince Abdul Aziz bin Majed and Sheikh Saleh Al-Hosain, head of the Presidency for the Two Holy Mosques.
Soon after his arrival in Madinah, the king visited the Prophet’s Mosque and performed the Asr prayer. He also visited the grave of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and paid his respects.
King Abdullah was accompanied by a number of senior princes and Cabinet members including Prince Muqrin, chief of intelligence, Prince Faisal bin Abdullah, minister of education, State Minister Abdul Aziz Al-Khuwaiter, Labor Minister Ghazi Al-Gosaibi, Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf, Culture and Information Minister Abdul Aziz Khoja and Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah.
King Abdullah is scheduled to launch new expansion projects at the Prophet’s Mosque, including the installation of 182 sunshades in the mosque’s courtyards. More than 200,000 worshippers will benefit from the sunshade project. The king allocated SR4.7 billion for the new expansion projects.
“King Abdullah will attend a large ceremony organized by the Royal Commission in Yanbu on Tuesday to lay the foundation stone and open a number of industrial and development projects,” said Prince Saud bin Abdullah Al-Thunayan, chairman of the commission.
He said the new projects to be launched by the king required a capital investment of SR45 billion. They include the SR20 billion industrial complex of Yanbu National Petrochemicals Co. (Yansab) and projects of Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC), the Royal Commission and Marafiq.
“The royal visit comes as part of the continuous follow-up by the Saudi leadership of developments in the twin industrial cities of Jubail and Yanbu,” Prince Saud said. “King Abdullah gives the utmost importance to the two industrial cities as they play a big role in attracting domestic and foreign investment,” he said.
Earlier this year King Abdullah visited the industrial city of Jubail in the Kingdom’s Eastern Province and launched new projects worth SR54 billion.
“The launch of mega-industrial projects in Jubail and Yanbu reflects the strength of the Saudi economy,” Prince Saud said, adding that the global financial crisis had little impact on the Kingdom.
He said King Abdullah’s visit would encourage officials and workers to speed up implementation of economic and development plans. He also noted the king’s tremendous support for the industrial sector.
During his tour, King Abdullah will also open the newly expanded Prince Abdul Mohsen bin Abdul Aziz Airport in Yanbu. The expansions were completed at a cost of SR188 million.
