The local Arriyadh Development Company (Ardco) is planning to acquire land and issue tenders for site clearing in October for its estimated SR13bn ($3.5bn) Al-Dohra high-rise scheme in Riyadh.

The Al-Dohra development will contain several 100-storey towers and is expected to be finished by 2025, says Khalid al-Dughaither, chief executive, Ardco.

Ardco expects to finish the masterplan and feasibility study of the 750,000-square-metre mixed-use project by August, and will begin acquiring the land in September. Site preparation works, which involve the demolition and removal of existing buildings, is expected to begin by the beginning of November. 

Many of the existing buildings within the site will be demolished to make way for Al-Dohra, which is part of Riyadh’s large-scale urban renewal initiative. At present, the project site is a fully functioning residential district.  

The Al-Dohra site, which sits adjacent to Riyadh’s traditional Masmaq district, contains a number of structures that will be spared demolition including the ancient wall of Riyadh’s Old City and the first home of the late King Fahd bin Abdulaziz al-Saud.

The project will be a build-operate-transfer (BOT) scheme, which is being led by a consortium of public and private entities including the Public Pension Agency and General Organisation for Social Insurance (Gosi).