Allen & Overy has advised NEOM, the smart and sustainable regional development project in northwest Saudi Arabia, in connection with a USD 175 million Series E investment in Volocopter.  NEOM will take a significant equity stake in the company as part of its strategic engagement with the global eVTOL industry, positioning it as a leader in future mobility solutions.

Many large Korean construction companies are moving to get a piece of the action as Saudi Arabia wants to partner with Korean builders in promoting the NEOM City project. Yet, DL E&C, the No. 3 player in the Korean construction market, appears to have failed to jump on the bandwagon. DL E&C reduced the proportion of the overseas business and focused instead on the housing business at home, which probably served as a negative factor for the builder, analysts say.

The unofficial "richest man in the world" and the de facto leader of Saudi Arabia's choice of lodging during his stay in South Korea is garnering attention with his extravagant decision to stay in a suite room that goes for 22 million won ($16,449) a night.  According to industry insiders, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived at Seoul Air Base around midnight and spent the night at the Lotte Hotel Seoul, a luxury business hotel situated in central Seoul.

Saudia is the only airline offering commercial service to the airport — the airport first got domestic service as of June 2019, and then international service started in June 2022.

President Yoon Suk Yeol and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman have agreed to expand South Korean firms’ participation in the construction of the infrastructure for mega smart city project NEOM, located in northwestern Saudi Arabia.  They also agreed to enhance and encourage their nations’ mutual cooperation in multilateral sectors including that of defense and future energy.

NEOM has organized a series of “Discover NEOM” meetings with investors and business partners in Berlin and Paris, as part of its ongoing efforts to attract investors and highlight the rapid progress it has made over the past year.  Entrepreneurs, industry pioneers and potential business partners from the two European countries had the chance to engage with NEOM’s CEO and several of the project’s leaders to explore future opportunities and support NEOM’s mission to redefine business, urban livability, and nature conservation.

Satellite constellation operator OneWeb, itself in the process of merging with Eutelsat, is partnering with the massive Saudi Arabian ‘NEOM, city of the future’ currently under construction on the Gulf of Aqaba.

OneWeb last October signed a $200 million joint-venture agreement with NEOM Tec & Digital Holding Co., to bring high-speed satellite connectivity to NEOM, Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East and neighbouring East African countries. Laith Hamad, CEO of the j-v, speaking at the recent Riyadh ‘Connecting the World from the Skies’ event, outlined the scope of joint project.