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The crown prince also laid the foundation stone for the aircraft manufacturing plant, the publication said.
Riyadh seeks to create its own nuclear power plant with two reactors, which will produce from 2 to 3.2 gigawatts of electricity to satisfy the country's demand for electric power.
Saudi Arabia, just like any other newcomer in the nuclear industry, sees research reactors as the first step towards the "big" nuclear power industry. Research reactors, in particular, are needed to carry out nuclear medicine projects, to produce of radioisotopes for industry, as well as to train qualified personnel.
In February, Russia's Rosatom has submitted an application to participate in a tender for the construction of two NPP units in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh was initially expected to announce results of the tender for the construction of nuclear power plants before 2019.
However, later reports indicated that the contractor might be chosen as late as in 2020.
Comment: "Saudi Arabia does not want to acquire any nuclear bomb, but without a doubt, if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon as possible," said Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. This suggests a farther-reaching reason SA is pursuing nuclear capabilities - given it sits on the second-largest oil reserve and has all the power it might need.