In its efforts to broaden the industrial base of the Saudi Arabian economy, it was obvious that the Kingdom should take advantage of its copious hydrocarbon energy resources.

The industrial cities at Jubail and Yanbu have played a key part in the Kingdom’s determination to develop hydrocarbon-based and energy-intensive industries. The Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, established in 1975, has created the basic infrastructure for these two cities, often described as the jewels in the Kingdom’s industrial crown.

In an effort to follow a balanced regional development objective, the Ministry of Industry and Electricity has established eight developed industrial cities, with various utilities and services necessary for the establishment of factories, at Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Qassim, Al-Hasa and Makkah. By 1999, these industrial cities covered a total area of 49 million square yards [41 million sq m], and had cost more than SR 2 billion. Currently, phase three of the second industrial cities in Riyadh, Qassim and Hofuf is being implemented. Development work on four new industrial cities in Madinah, Asir, Jouf and Tabouk has also started.