Saudi Industrial Investment Group (SIIG) has announced plans to develop a SAR 1.4 billion (approximately $370 million) bio-protein production facility in Jubail Industrial City, marking a significant step in Saudi Arabia’s drive to build a domestic aquaculture sector and reduce dependence on imported fish feed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The plant, to be located in the Kingdom’s Eastern Province, will produce 50,000 tonnes of single-cell protein annually using natural gas as feedstock. The project is a joint venture between SIIG, which will hold an 80 percent stake, and UK-headquartered biotechnology company Unibio, which will own the remaining 20 percent. The facility will manufacture Uniprotein, a high-quality protein ingredient widely used as a sustainable alternative to fishmeal in aquaculture feed.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The investment builds on an existing relationship between the two companies. SIIG committed $70 million to Unibio in March 2023 and currently holds a 24 percent stake in the British firm. The Jubail plant represents the operational realisation of that partnership, translating research and investment into large-scale domestic production.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Construction is expected to begin in the second half of 2026, with completion targeted for the latter six months of 2027. Following a trial production period in the second half of 2027, commercial operations are scheduled to commence in the first half of 2028. The phased rollout reflects the complexity of scaling bio-protein manufacturing to industrial capacity while meeting food safety and quality standards.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
SIIG disclosed the project in a statement to the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul). The company’s shares responded positively to the announcement, closing 1.66 percent higher at SAR 12.87 on the day of disclosure, extending year-to-date gains to 3.62 percent. The General Organisation for Social Insurance holds an 18.58 percent stake in SIIG, highlighting the project’s alignment with broader national economic priorities.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The Jubail bio-protein facility fits squarely within Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 goals of diversifying the national economy and achieving greater food security. The Kingdom has identified aquaculture as a priority sector, given its potential to generate sustainable protein supply for a growing population while creating high-quality industrial jobs in the Eastern Province.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Jubail Industrial City, one of the world’s largest planned industrial complexes, provides the infrastructure, logistics, and energy access required for a gas-fed bio-protein plant of this scale. Local production of Uniprotein is expected to provide year-round, consistent supplies for fish and shrimp farmers across the Kingdom, reducing reliance on imported protein sources and supporting the competitiveness of Saudi aquaculture businesses.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Saudi Industrial Investment Group (SIIG) has announced plans to develop a SAR 1.4 billion (approximately $370 million) bio-protein production facility in Jubail Industrial City, marking a significant step in Saudi Arabia’s drive to build a domestic aquaculture sector and reduce dependence on imported fish feed. A Strategic Investment in Food Security The plant, to be located in the Kingdom’s Eastern Province, will produce 50,000 tonnes of single-cell protein annually using natural gas as feedstock. The project is a joint venture between SIIG, which will hold an 80 percent stake, and UK-headquartered biotechnology company Unibio, which will own the remaining 20<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":53588,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[12852],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-53530","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-finance"],"yoast_head":"\n