A joint venture of South Korea’s Samsung C&T and the local Contracting & Construction Enterprises (CCE) has won the estimated $170m contract to build the new headquarters building for the local Al-Rajhi Bank in Riyadh.

The 205-metre-tall tower will be built on King Fahd Road. The 10,246-square-metre plot set aside for the tower is next to Ahmed al-Kashef Street on the north and empty plots to the south and east owned by Al-Rajhi Bank.

The top two floors of the 36-storey office tower will be interlinked by an internal courtyard and will be used by the senior management of the bank. The tower will be built on top of a four-level basement car park and a 10-level car parking podium. Three levels of amenity floors above the entrance lobby will cater to the employees with the provision of an auditorium floor with training rooms, a restaurant floor serving fastfood and regional cuisines and a prayer hall floor, which can accommodate up to 600 worshippers.

The total built-up area will be 121,445 sq m, comprising 60,859 sq m for the tower, 40,984 sq m for the basement and 19,602 sq m for the podium.

The concept design was prepared by the New York office of Skidmore Owings & Merrill. Singapore’s RSP Architects is completing the design work. US-based Hill International is the project manager.

Al-Rajhi Bank is the latest local bank to build new headquarters. The local bank Samba is currently building a new 39-floor headquarters tower at the King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) on the outskirts of Riyadh. In June 2010, the local El-Seif Engineering & Contracting was awarded the estimated SR900m ($240m) contract to build the facility.