EV-

EVIQ, Mercedes, Juffali to develop EV infrastructure: The Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Company (EVIQ) — the JV between the PIF and the Saudi Electricity Company — inked an MoU with Mercedes-Benz KSA and the Juffali Automotive Company to develop a high-speed EV charging network across the Kingdom, according to a statement. The agreement also covers initiatives to raise public awareness of switching to EVs.

EVIQ is on a roll: EVIQ partnered with Ceer, Sasco, Lucid, BYD, and Zeekr to develop EV infrastructure across the country. EVIQ opened its first fast EV charging station in Riyadh in January 2024 and plans to deploy over 5k chargers across the Kingdom by 2030.

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RETAIL-

Tihama joins Lenovo: Tihama Distribution, a subsidiary of Tihama Advertising, PublicRelations, and Marketing, is now an official partner of Lenovo through the Lenovo 360 Engage Program, according to a disclosure to Tadawul. The agreement allows Tihama to sell Lenovo’s commercial devices and infrastructure solutions in the Kingdom, including laptops, PCs, servers, and related services. Tihama also received several technical certifications from Lenovo in areas like data centers, cloud computing, and AI.

ICYMI– Tihama Advertising signed a one-year non-binding MoU with Masar Alula last month to explore acquiring a stake in the firm, which owns the Hashikom restaurant chain.

STARTUP WATCH-

Homegrown AI-driven health and fitness app Miran merged with the Egyptian wellbeing platform Welnes App, according to a post on LinkedIn. The merger was led by an unnamed local angel investor affiliated with Doroob VC, according to a press release.

The details: The new company will be headquartered in Riyadh and led by CEO Amr Saleh (LinkedIn) and CTO Eslam Ali (LinkedIn), aiming to develop a unified health platform that combines Miran’s AI-driven tools with Welnes’ coach-led programs to offer customized meal and workout plans supported by data-driven health analytics.

INS.-

Al Rajhi Takaful retained an Ins. Financial Strength Rating (IFSR) of A3 with a stable outlook, based on a strong market position, steady good profits, and low reserve risk, Moody’s said in a press release (pdf). The rating agency drew attention to business diversification, profitability changes, asset quality, and market share as potential factors leading to changes in rating.

LOGISTICS-

Saudia Cargo + Henan ink cargo partnership: Saudia Cargo and China’s Henan Aviation Group inked an MoU to ramp up services between Riyadh and Zhengzhou via the Air Silk Road, according to a statement. The move looks to expand the airline’s cargo capacity between the two countries and foster trade growth. No further details about the number of new routes or the timeline were disclosed.

HOUSING-

NHC + CSCEC plan 20k homes: The National Housing Company (NHC) extended its partnership with China State Construction Engineering Corp (CSCEC) to build 20k housing units in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, the company said in a post on X. So far, over 3.8k units have already been developed through this collaboration.

Part of a bigger plan: The NHC has been tasked with building affordable housing options to close the 1.2 mn housing units gap needed to achieve a 70% home ownership target by 2030. It may add another 100k housing units this year to the 200k already in the pipeline.

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