Saudi PIF, French Investment Firm Ardian Complete 37.6% Stake Acquisition In Heathrow Airport For $4B
This is the headline from a Forbes article dated 12/12/24. The Saudis are making major financial plays in tourism in Saudi Arabia as well as establishing an important focus in air service. The article notes that the Saudi share of Heathrow will be 15% but it certainly could go higher unless some language precludes it for later on. The article notes this about their airline aspirations: "The wealth fund announced the launch of Riyadh Air in March as a new national carrier in addition to Saudi Arabian Airlines.
Riyadh Air is planning to launch commercial operations by mid-2025. In October, Riyadh Air said it placed an order for 60 Airbus A321neo aircraft amid a larger deal for 132 planes to support its expansion. It also ordered 39 wide-body 787 jets from Boeing.
The airline will connect Riyadh with more than 100 destinations globally and support Saudi Arabia in expanding its footprint in the travel, tourism, and aviation landscape." So maybe this helps the Brits as it looks like Heathrow will benefit from being a major part for the Saudis airlines.
The Saudis have this financial transformation plan called Vision 2030 that includes an incredibly ambitious and stunning destination development known as Qiddiya. That is about sports, entertainment and what appears to be high living. It will be like having 6 Flags, Disney, Vegas, several sports venues and high rise condos etc. all rolled in together. You can look it up and the concept photos are beautiful. Here is one of just a portion of the proposed complex:
There is a big thing to consider yet in all of this and that is how do people around the world deal with the controversy about what was done to Kashoggi as well as other repression. Do people just keep their mouth shut or what? Of course it's a good management/leadership move to transition away from being just a mainly oil based economy and that aspect can be appreciated. But Mr. Leopard it's those spots we're still worried about.
https://www.forbesmiddleeast.com/industry/aviation/saudi-pif-french-investment-firm-ardian-complete-376-stake-acquisition-in-heathrow-airport-for-%2441b