As Mr. Freeman acknowledged in a 2006 interview with an outfit called the Saudi-US Relations Information Service, MEPC owes its endowment to the "generosity" of King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia.

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In another major development for the city, the British property company MEPC Plc announced it had formed a joint venture with Norwest Holst to construct and maintain a new square and road linking Cardiff city centre and Cardiff Bay waterfront.

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