Jubail ( ar, الجبيل, ''Al Jubayl'') is a city in the
Eastern province on the Persian Gulf coast of
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
, with a total population of 684,531 as of 2021. It is home to the largest industrial city in the world.
It is also home to the Middle East's largest and world's fourth largest petrochemical company
SABIC
Saudi Basic Industries Corporation ( ar, الشركة السعودية للصناعات الأساسية), known as SABIC ( ar, سابك), is a Saudi chemical manufacturing company. 70% of SABIC's shares are owned by Saudi Aramco. It is active in ...
.
It has the world's largest IWPP (Independent Water and Power Project) producing 2743.6 MW of electricity and 800,000 m
3 of water daily.
Jubail comprises the Old Town of Al Jubail (Jubail Balad), which was a small fishing village until 1975, and the Industrial Area. Jubail Industrial City is the largest
civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...
project in the world today.
In 1975, the Saudi government designated Jubail as the site for new industrial city, with rapid expansion and
industrialization
Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
arising. The new industrial and residential areas were named Madīnat al Jubayl aṣ Ṣinā`īyah (Jubail Industrial City). The 2005 Census Report for Jubail Industrial City estimates the population at 224,430 residents.
History
The town of Al-Jubail, on the
Arabian Gulf coast of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has ancient roots. Human habitation dates back at least 7,000 years, when the people of
Dilmun
Dilmun, or Telmun, ( Sumerian: , later 𒉌𒌇(𒆠), ni.tukki = DILMUNki; ar, دلمون) was an ancient East Semitic-speaking civilization in Eastern Arabia mentioned from the 3rd millennium BC onwards.
Based on contextual evidence, it was l ...
— whose civilization radiated up and down the coast of the Arabian Gulf — established a settlement there.
Archaeological place: Crease Tower or Tuwayah Tower was constructed around 1928. It was key source of water for Jubail.
In September 1933, Jubail gained a measure of fame as the landing site for the first team of geologists to explore for oil in Saudi Arabia.
Jubail Industrial City
It is the world's largest industrial city established in 1975. It covers 1,016 square kilometers and includes industrial complexes, major harbour and port facilities. It contributes to about 7% of Saudi Arabia's GDP.
Bechtel
Bechtel Corporation () is an American engineering, procurement, construction, and project management company founded in San Francisco, California, and headquartered in Reston, Virginia. , the ''Engineering News-Record'' ranked Bechtel as the sec ...
began work on the Jubail Industrial City project more than 40 years ago and is still working in Jubail now. Bechtel has managed the Jubail project since it began in the mid-1970s, and in 2004 the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu asked the company to manage Jubail II, a $3.8 billion expansion of the city's industrial and residential areas.
Transportation
Highway
Jubail is directly connected with other cities by two major highways;
Dhahran-Jubail Highway
Highway 613 (), popularly known as the Dhahran–Jubail Expressway () and the Khobar–Dammam–Dhahran Expressway (), is a major north-south controlled-access secondary highway in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, spanning 196 kilometers (12 ...
and
Abu Hadriyah Highway
Highway 95 (), also known as the Abu Hadriyah Highway, is a major highway in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Beginning at the Batha' border crossing with the United Arab Emirates, the highway extends to the Kuwaiti border, passing near or ...
.
One ongoing project is the Jubail-Qassim (Buraidah) Expressway , which will reduce the distance between Jubail and Qassim (Buraidah) to around from the current .
Railway
A branch of the
Saudi Landbridge Project
The Saudi Landbridge Project is a planned railway project which forms part of the Saudi Railways Expansion Programme.
Intended mainly for freight, the railway will connect Jeddah on the Red Sea coast with the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh. railway is proposed to connect Jubail to
Dammam.
Seaport
There are two seaports in Jubail—the Jubail Commercial Seaport and the King Fahd Industrial Seaport. As of 2011, Jubail ranks 92nd in the world in terms of Total Cargo Volume with 44,700 tons.
Airport
The city is served by
King Fahd International Airport.
Jubail Naval Airport
Jubail ( ar, الجبيل, ''Al Jubayl'') is a city in the Eastern province on the Persian Gulf coast of Saudi Arabia, with a total population of 684,531 as of 2021. It is home to the largest industrial city in the world. It is also home to th ...
is an airfield 25 kilometres (16 mi) west of Jubail City, near the industrial area. Originally constructed by the Royal Commission of Jubail and Yanbu as part of Jubail project, it was meant to be used for commercial aviation until it was decided to utilize the large nearby
King Fahd International Airport. Thus, it was handed over to the
Ministry of Defence and has been used as a base for the naval aviation group/eastern fleet of the
Royal Saudi Navy
The Royal Saudi Navy ( ar, البَحْريَّة الْمَلكيَّة السُّعُودِيَّة, Al-Quwwat al-Bahriyah al-Arabiyah as-Su'udiyah) or Royal Saudi Naval Forces ( ar, القُوَّات البَحْريَّة الْمَلك ...
since then. The terminal in Dammam Airport is about 60 km drive from the suburbs of Jubail, 80 km from the city center and 100 km from the Royal Commission neighborhoods.
However it was recently announced that the airport will be opened for private aviation operations starting September 2014. A project to renovate the airfield was undertaken since some of the airfield's infrastructure was incomplete, as a result of the previous change for the use of airport from commercial to military. To date, the project and renovations have not been completed.
In addition, two other airfields are located in the city;
Abu Ali Airport is located in the Island of Abu Ali while the other is located in
King Abdulaziz Naval Base
The King Abdulaziz Naval Base (Arabic: قاعدة الملك عبد العزيز البحرية) (KANB) is a naval base in Al-Sharqiyah, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. It is operated by the Saudi Arabian Navy. The base is located about southea ...
.
Main sights
Jubail has a robust market place, known as International Market. It also has several malls, such as
Fanateer Mall,
Galleria Mall,
Jubail Center Mall
Jubail ( ar, الجبيل, ''Al Jubayl'') is a city in the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern province on the Persian Gulf coast of Saudi Arabia, with a total population of 684,531 as of 2021. It is home to the largest industrial city in t ...
,
Day N Day
A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. In everyday life, the word "day" often refers to a solar day, which is the length between two so ...
,
City Max
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
,
Hyper-Panda,
Panda
The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear (or simply the panda), is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its bold black-and-white coat and rotund body. The name "giant panda" is sometimes use ...
, HyperMarket,
Jubail Centre
Jubail ( ar, الجبيل, ''Al Jubayl'') is a city in the Eastern province on the Persian Gulf coast of Saudi Arabia, with a total population of 684,531 as of 2021. It is home to the largest industrial city in the world. It is also home to th ...
,
Home Center
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...
,
Red Tag
Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...
,
Centrepoint, Nesto,
Jubail Plaza, Lulu and Jubail Mall.
The Jubail desalination plant
As part of the industrial city, Jubail has a desalination plant called
Saline Water Conversion Corp. (SWCC). In 2019, SWCC hit Guinness World Record as the largest producer of desalinated water worldwide. The plant hit the record as it produces 5.6 million cubic meters every day.
Distances to nearby places
Eastern Province
*
Safwa city
Safwa ( ar, صفوى, ') is a city in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia situated on the Persian Gulf coast. Safwa has a population of about 100,000 people.
Safwa has a few government departments, public utilities, educational institutions and o ...
:
*
Qatif
Qatif or Al-Qatif ( ar, ٱلْقَطِيف ''Al-Qaṭīf'') is a governorate and urban area located in Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. It extends from Ras Tanura and Jubail in the north to Dammam in the south, and from the Persian Gulf in the ...
:
*
Ras Tanura
Ras Tanura ( ar, رأس تنورة, Ra's Tannūrah, lit=cape oven, cape brazier, presumably due to the unusual heat prevalent at the cape that projects into the sea) is a city in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia located on a peninsula extend ...
:
*
Saihat
Saihat City ( ar, سيهات) is a city located on the east coast of Saudi Arabia, with a population of 100,000 in 2005.
History
The oldest documents concerning Saihat, which are more than 400 years old, say that Saihat was under the division o ...
:
*
Dammam:
*
Khobar
Khobar ( ar, ٱلْخُبَر, translit=al-Khobar) is a city and governorate in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, situated on the coast of the Persian Gulf. With a population of 457,748 as of 2017, Khobar is part of the 'Triplet ...
:
*
Abqaiq:
*
Al-Ahsa:
Other provinces
*
Riyadh
Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the R ...
:
*
Buraydah
Buraidah ( ar, بريدة ') is the capital and largest city of Al-Qassim Region in north-central Saudi Arabia in the heart of the Arabian Peninsula. Buraydah lies equidistant from the Red Sea to the west and Persian Gulf to the east. Its known f ...
:
*
Arar:
*
Ha'il:
*
Medina
Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...
:
*
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
:
*
Jeddah
Jeddah ( ), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; ar, , Jidda, ), is a city in the Hejaz region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the country's commercial center. Established in the 6th century BC as a fishing village, Jeddah's pro ...
:
Other cities of
Eastern Arabia
Eastern Arabia, historically known as al-Baḥrayn ( ar, البحرين) until the 18th century, is a region stretched from Basra to Khasab along the Persian Gulf coast and included parts of modern-day Bahrain, Kuwait, Eastern Saudi Arabia, Unite ...
*
Manama
Manama ( ar, المنامة ', Bahrani Arabic, Bahrani pronunciation: ) is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 200,000 people as of 2020. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is h ...
:
*
Kuwait City
Kuwait City ( ar, مدينة الكويت) is the capital and largest city of Kuwait. Located at the heart of the country on the south shore of Kuwait Bay on the Persian Gulf, it is the political, cultural and economical centre of the emirate, ...
:
*
Doha
Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the coun ...
:
*
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area.
...
:
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Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
:
*
Muscat
Muscat ( ar, مَسْقَط, ) is the capital and most populated city in Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is s ...
:
Education
Schools
* Al Abna'a Schools
* Mariya international School
* Al Moattasem International School
* Hafeez International School
* International Indian School, Al- Jubail (IIS Jubail)
* ISG Jubail
*
Jubail Academy International School The Jubail International School, also known as Yandhi is a member of the Al-Hussan network of schools, including its sister school Al-Hussan Academy in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia. It opened in September 1999 and has KGI to grade 12 with students repre ...
* King Fahd High School
* Pakistan International School
* Al Murjan Elementary School
* Al Ahsa Secondary School
* Andalus Elementary School
* Dana Elementary School
* Fanatir Elementary School
* Fayha Elementary School
* Khaleeg Intermediate School
* Al Deffi Secondary School
* Najd Secondary School
* Umm Alqurra Secondary School
Universities and colleges
*
Jubail Industrial College
Jubail Industrial College is a technical college in Saudi Arabia established in 1989 by the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, in Jubail Industrial City
Jubail Industrial City, the world's largest industrial city, was established in 1975 ...
*
Jubail Technical Institute
The Jubail Technical Institute is an educational establishment in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.
It was Inaugurated in 2004, under the umbrella of the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu. The main purpose of the institute is to provid ...
* Jubail University College
Hospitals, dispensaries and dental centers
* Al Fanateer Hospital
* Al-Fayadh Medical Clinic
* Al-Hijailan Medical Clinic
* Al-Khonaini Dispensary
* Al-Shabani General Hospital
* Al-Shifa Hospital
* Almana General Hospital
* Almana Medical Center
* Al Naba Medical Complex
* Ar Razi Clinic
* Armed Forces Hospital
* Badr Al Khaleej Medical Center
* Danat Al Sahraa Medical Company (KIMS)
* Dina Dispensary for Medical Services
* Huda Younis Dental Complex
* Jubail General Hospital
* Jubail Medical Center (Mutlaq Al Otaibi Medical Service Group)
* Jubail National Dispensary
* KIMS Medical Center
* Kingdom Dental Medical Dispensary
* Lulu Dispensary
* Lulu Hospital
* Mayo Dental Center
* Mouwasat Hospital
* Ram Dental Complex
* Royal Commission Hospital
Climate
Jubail has a
hot desert climate
The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...
(
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''BWh'').
See also
*
List of cities and towns in Saudi Arabia
The following is a list of cities and towns in Saudi Arabia.
Alphabetical list of cities and towns
References
Central Department of Statistics and Information
{{Portal, Saudi Arabia
Lists of cities by country, Saudi Arabia, List of ...
References
External links
Royal Commission for Jubail and YanbuJubail City - Article about master planning the Jubail New Industrial CityJubail directoryzeenews.india.com
{{Authority control
Populated places in Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia
Port cities and towns in Saudi Arabia