Bombay Durpun - Saudi Arabia to invest $7 bn in theme parks near Paris

The agreement for the "colossal" project was signed during a two-day visit to France by Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, said President Emmanuel Macron's office.

The investment will see the construction of three theme parks near Cergy-Pontoise, around 30 kilometres (20 miles) northwest of Paris, it said.

Macron on X hailed the "unprecedented announcement", saying the attractions would be a "new global destination".

The project will be led by investment firm Qiddiya, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund.

The parks are expected to create 22,000 direct jobs, compared with around 20,000 generated by Disneyland Paris, according to the presidency.

The project "stemmed from a discussion between the president of the republic and the crown prince in December 2024" in Riyadh, where they discovered their "shared passion" for manga, "and in particular Dragon Ball Z", an adviser to Macron told reporters.

Reports had emerged over the summer of plans for a park dedicated to the iconic Japanese franchise in the Val-d'Oise region, though no official confirmation was given.

Macron's office confirmed that one park is expected to be manga-themed.

The themes of the other two have yet to be disclosed.

The parks will be built and opened in stages, with construction expected to take several years, Macron's office said, without giving an opening date.

Asked about entrusting such a project to Riyadh despite criticism of its human rights record, his office said: "At no point, when we attract a project, do we seek to lecture others."

The presidency said two other contracts were signed with French companies during the Saudi prince's visit: one for the marine logistics company CMA CGM to help develop Saudi Arabia's Jeddah Islamic Port on the Red Sea, for $434 million; and the other with rail transport group Alstom to supply metro carriages for Riyadh's metro, for $580 million.

- 'Provocation' -

The trip marks a rare foreign visit for the crown prince, with Paris emphasising that he seldom leaves his home country other than for international summits.

It was his first such trip in almost a year.

On Sunday, Macron hosted the Saudi crown prince at the Esports World Cup, while Monday's talks were also expected to focus on strategic issues, including events in the Middle East.

But the Saudi leader's visit has sparked fierce criticism in France.

Three journalists' unions protested Paris's decision to host him, pointing to a live French investigation into allegations of torture and forced disappearance following a complaint lodged in 2021 over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Khashoggi, a Saudi with US residency who was a critic of the Saudi ruling family, was murdered in Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul in 2018. His body, cut up, was never recovered.

US intelligence concluded Mohammed bin Salman was directly involved in Khashoggi's killing, and a UN investigation described the journalist's death as an "extrajudicial killing for which Saudi Arabia is responsible".

In December 2021, Macron became one of the first Western leaders to meet the prince in Saudi Arabia in the wake of the Khashoggi killing. The Saudi crown prince has made multiple visits to France since then.

B.Chakrabarti--BD