RIYADH/DUBAI: Saudi Arabia is taking managerial control of Saudi Bin LadenGroup and discussing a possible transfer of some of the giant constructiongroup’s assets to the state while its chairman and other family members arein detention, sources told Reuters.
Bin Laden, which had over 100,000 employees at its height, is the biggestbuilder in the country and important to Riyadh’s plans for large realestate, industrial and tourism projects to help diversify the economybeyond oil.
However, the group has been hurt financially in the past couple of years bya slump in the construction industry and a temporary exclusion from newstate contracts after a crane accident killed 107 people at Makkah’s GrandMosque in 2015. It was forced to lay off thousands of employees.
Riyadh’s move to take control appears aimed at ensuring the group cancontinue to serve Saudi Arabia’s development plans, said banking andindustry sources, who declined to be named due to the political andcommercial sensitivity of the matter.
The government detained scores of senior officials and businessmen inOctober as part of a sweeping crackdown on corruption. The Bin Ladengroup’s chairman Bakr Bin Laden and several family members have been held,the sources said.
Saudi officials are trying to negotiate settlements with detainees, sayingthey aim to claw back some $100 billion of funds that rightfully belong tothe state. The talks on Bin Laden’s future are part of this effort, thesources said.
Since the detention of bin Laden family members, the finance ministry hasformed a five-member committee, including three government representatives,to oversee the group’s business and handle relations with suppliers andcontractors, the sources said.
Bin Laden executives did not respond to phone calls seeking comment.Finance ministry officials and the government media office also did notrespond to requests for comment.
Setting a precedent?
Although ownership of Bin Laden currently remains with the family, thegroup is in negotiations with the government about the potential transferof some assets to the state, or possibly reducing or eliminating thegovernment’s outstanding debts to Bin Laden, the sources said.
One banking source with detailed knowledge of the group said the debt mighttotal around $30 billion – the legacy of a period about 18 months ago whenthe government held off from settling many of its debts as its financeswere hurt by low oil prices.
It is not clear whether the government’s handling of Bin Laden may set aprecedent for the cases of other businessmen detained in the corruptionpurge.
They include one of the kingdom’s most prominent businessmen, PrinceAlwaleed bin Talal, who is chairman and owner of global investment firmKingdom Holding 4280.SE.
Because of Bin Laden’s strategic importance to the construction industryand development projects, as well as its financial struggle, it may betreated differently from the assets of other detained suspects.
The new management committee’s government representatives includeAbdulrehman al-Harkan, a former chief executive of Saudi property companyDar Al Arkan, and Khaled Nahas, a board member of petrochemical producerSaudi Basic Industries Corp, the sources said. There are also two familymembers on the committee: Yehia Bin Laden and Abdullah Bin Laden.
Previously, the family was in total control of the group, with Bakr BinLaden taking most decisions, the sources said.
Although Osama Bin Laden, the founder of al-Qaeda who was killed by USforces in 2011, was part of the same family, the company did not have anyties to him. – Agencies