A long-delayed road project between Oman and Saudi Arabia through the world’s largest sand desert is in the final phase of construction, officials said on Tuesday.
The new road starts from Ibri, a town in south-west Oman, and ends in Al Ahsa in east Saudi Arabia, saving 16 hours of travel time compared with the existing road.
The 720-kilometre motorway was originally scheduled for completion in 2014, but was delayed because of technical issues.
Salim Al Naimi, Undersecretary for Oman’s Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, said the project could be completed by the end of 2021.
“Finally, we are going to complete the road project after many years since the start of the construction,” Mr Al Naimi told Oman TV.
“There were many technical problems because the road is being built in a very remote desert. Hopefully, it will be completed by the end of this year or the beginning of next year.”
He did not say how much it would cost, but industry experts close to the project said the project will come in at about $475 million to complete.
“The initial cost to complete the project was estimated at about $350 million but because of technical problems, the final price is now expected to be about $475 million,” the industry expert told The National.
It passes straight through the Rub Al Khali desert, known as the Empty Quarter, which spreads over Oman, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The section of the road in Oman is about 160km long while about 580km is in Saudi Arabia.
When completed, the new road will save more than 16 hours in the travel time between the two towns at each end of the route. The existing 1,600km road linking the two nations also cuts through the desert, but via a much longer route. It was built more than 40 years ago.
Seyyid Faisal bin Turki, Oman’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, said on Oman TV that the new road will boost commercial activities between the two countries.
“The road, when completed, will increase foreign trade between Oman and Saudi Arabia. It will also speed up exports between the two countries in the shortest period of time and that will contribute to cost-saving because of the shorter route,” he said.
Oman exports fish to the Saudi market while Saudi Arabia provides dairy produce, vegetables and petrochemicals to Oman.
Earlier this year, Oman and Saudi Arabia held a series of talks to boost trade relations. Oman’s minister of commerce, industry and investment promotion revealed that an Omani-Saudi Business Council is in the works.
Omani businessmen say they are looking forward to the completion of the new road boosting trade.
“It takes a long time to export anything to Saudi Arabia with the existing road. The new road will cut travel time by more than half. We have to drive for nearly 18 hours to reach Saudi Arabia. I calculate that the new road will take only six hours,” said Khamis Al Shibli, 44, an Omani fish exporter from the town of Ibri in Oman.
Other Omanis said the road will also benefit tourists and pilgrims.
“Omanis who are living in the south-west of the country will find it easy to use the new road to visit Saudi Arabia for tourism purposes and the Makkah pilgrimage. It will be quicker and a cheaper mode of transport, too,” said Hamed Al Abri, 34, a resident of Ibri.
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
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