New Dammam is arguably the most ambitious housing project in the Eastern Province’s modern history at 32 square kilometres, it is just over half the size of Manhattan and sits on land that was sea floor less than fifteen years ago.
Saudi Arabia’s New Dammam project, valued at SAR 98 billion (USD 26 billion), is advancing across 32 million square metres of reclaimed coastal land directly east of established Dammam, developed in collaboration between the Saudi government, Adel Real Estate and Alinma Capital — the investment arm of Saudi bank Alinma. The master-planned city incorporates 15,791 housing plots, 5,210 investment plots, 1,389 commercial plots, 322 waterfront palaces and 49 parks, framed around more than 5 million square metres of waterways and marine canals. The project was prominently featured at the SEREDO real estate expo in Dammam in May 2026 as the flagship development anchoring the Eastern Province’s Vision 2030 urban transformation.
Scale and Urban Design
The reclaimed land base distinguishes New Dammam from other Saudi giga-projects, which are typically located on desert or mountain terrain. The site was created through offshore land reclamation completed in the 2010s and has remained undeveloped since, providing a blank urban canvas on a coastal location with intrinsic waterfront value.
The project’s design incorporates marine canals that extend through the residential neighbourhoods, creating a network of waterfront plots analogous to the canal communities that command premium prices in Dubai. Green spaces exceed 500,000 square metres, meeting international benchmarks for per-capita public space in a city of New Dammam’s projected scale. The 322 waterfront palaces sit on the most visible canal-front positions and are expected to attract high-net-worth Saudi buyers from the Eastern Province’s established business community.
Developer Partners and Financing
Adel Real Estate, the lead developer, brings land management and master-planning expertise, while Alinma Capital provides the financing and investment structuring capability to mobilise capital at SAR 98 billion scale. Alinma Bank’s involvement through its capital arm introduces direct retail banking connectivity: Alinma’s mortgage products are likely to serve the bulk of end-user buyers in the project’s affordable and mid-market housing segments.
The partnership model — private developer, investment bank affiliate, government vision mandate — mirrors the structure used in other large Saudi housing programmes, including ROSHN’s national housing delivery vehicle and the Jeddah Central Development Company. Unlike NEOM or AMAALA, New Dammam is explicitly intended as conventional residential housing rather than a tourism or experiential destination, targeting Saudi families and Eastern Province workers rather than international visitors.
Eastern Province Context
The Eastern Province is Saudi Arabia’s oil heartland, home to Saudi Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran and the bulk of the Kingdom’s petrochemical infrastructure. It is also one of the most rapidly growing urban regions in the country, with a large expatriate and contractor population supporting the energy sector and an established Saudi merchant class seeking upgraded residential products.
Dammam, Al Khobar and Dhahran together form the Eastern Province conurbation, which has historically lacked the dramatic waterfront infrastructure that characterises coastal cities such as Jeddah. New Dammam addresses that gap directly, positioning the Eastern Province as a destination for premium residential investment beyond its industrial reputation.
