Korea, Saudi Arabia sign MOUs for mobility, road projects

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong, right, shakes hands with his Saudi Arabian counterpart Saleh bin Nasser Al Jasser, after signing memorandums of understanding (MOUs) on cooperation on future mobility and transport at Four Seasons Hotel Seoul in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

Korea and Saudi Arabia signed two initial agreements on Tuesday for future mobility and roads, the transport ministry said, in the latest move to boost cooperation between the two countries.

The memorandums of understanding call for cooperation in the future of mobility and innovation in the transport and logistic services sectors as well as in the field of roads, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The move came as Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong met with his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Saleh bin Nasser Al Jasser, at the second South Korea-Saudi Arabia Mobility and Innovation Road Show in Seoul.

"In the road show, Korean companies will promote their advanced and innovative technologies when it comes to infrastructure construction, mobility solutions, smart cities and smart ports," Won said.

On Monday, Korea's Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho held talks with his Saudi counterpart, Mohammed Al-jadaan, in Seoul and asked Riyadh to help Korean companies participate in Saudi Arabia's Neom smart city project.

Neom is Saudi Arabia's $500 billion project to build an automated, sustainable city, operated by robots and powered by solar energy, in the kingdom's northwest province of Tabuk. Saudi Arabia has been pushing for the Vision 2030 blueprint, which centers on easing the kingdom's reliance on oil and fostering other growth engines.

South Korean builders and engineering companies achieved an accumulated $156.5 billion worth of construction projects in the Middle Eastern country as of March this year. (Yonhap)