Naif AlHamdan, Emaar The Economic City's new managing director. (Source: KAEC)
A Public Investment Fund executive took charge of the developer behind King Abdullah Economic City on Sunday, the day it reported that its quarterly loss had nearly doubled.
Naif AlHamdan, head of PIF's west coast portfolio and vice chairman of Emaar The Economic City, starts as managing director. He replaces chief executive Abdulaziz Alnowaiser, who resigned in October "due to his professional commitments."
The developer lost SR241 million ($64 million) in the third quarter, up from SR135 million a year earlier. Revenue fell 60% to SR145 million, according to its filing.
A third loss this year
The company has lost money in every quarter of 2026, for a total of SR444 million over nine months. Fewer property handovers and SR54 million in legal provisions drove the latest result.
Its short-term debts exceeded its short-term assets by SR755 million at the end of September. Its auditor flagged "a material uncertainty" over its ability to continue as a going concern.
The fund's city now
PIF owns 55.5% of the company after the regulator cleared the conversion of SR4.12 billion of its loans into shares, approved by shareholders last December.
AlHamdan is the second PIF veteran to run it in two years. Alnowaiser came from PIF's Tahakom Investments in 2024.
Cars and cargo
The city is one of Saudi Arabia's four special economic zones. It hosts the King Salman Automotive Cluster, home to US electric carmaker Lucid's first plant abroad and local EV brand Ceer, with Hyundai and Pirelli plants planned.
In May, the developer awarded a SR547 million contract to local builder Nesma & Partners for the cluster's infrastructure.
King Abdullah Port, inside the city, gives it a stake in the shift of Gulf-bound cargo to the Red Sea since Hormuz closed. So far, though, most of that cargo has gone to Jeddah, even as warehouse demand surges.
Any Red Sea gain also depends on ships reaching the sea safely through the Bab al-Mandab strait.
Pilgrims and beaches
The city has its own stop on the Haramain high-speed railway between Makkah and Madinah, which puts it in reach of the kingdom's religious tourism.
In February, it signed a deal with the Tourism Development Fund and K. Hovnanian's Middle East arm for two five-star hotels, a beach club and branded homes on the waterfront.
What to watch
Whether AlHamdan can turn factories, a port and visitors into recurring income before the cash gap widens further.
