Khaled Al Qureshi,: MAJOR ROLE FOR PRIVATE SECTOR IN BOOSTING SAUDI ARABIA’S

aleqtsad. Riyadh

The water sector in Saudi Arabia has become a mature market,” Al Qureshi told OBG. “In Saudi Arabia, when major desalination started in 2018, the capacity production through private sector participation was only 1.2m cubic metres per day. Today we are almost double that.”

Al Qureshi said the industry’s expansion was providing a wealth of opportunities for international investors, while also contributing to the Kingdom’s efforts to strengthen local content and facilitate knowledge transfer.

He also gave detailed updates of the stage that each project had reached, the total number planned and the contribution they would make collectively to production once complete. “The total investment cost of these projects is approximately SR35bn,” the CEO explained. “And with these projects mentioned, we will rise to 7.5m cubic metres per day.”

Turning to the private sector’s growing role in the Saudi economy, Al Qureshi said the water industry was leading the way, with an extensive list of successful PPP projects.

He also highlighted the increased focus on environmental, social and governance principles, citing decisions to use renewable energy and new technologies, and reuse claimed water as key examples of improvements made. “Technology is playing a very vital role in desalination,” Al Qureshi said. “Nowadays we are adapting the most friendly and economic technology, which is reverse osmosis technology; this is used for producing desalinated water from seawater.”

Marc-André de Blois, OBG’s Director of PR and Video Content, said the interview with Al Qureshi provided viewers with a detailed snapshot of the major developments under way in Saudi Arabia’s water sector, which are crucial for the country’s broader industrial development.

“Saudi Arabia’s efforts to move towards a more sustainable, diverse economic model and build a thriving private sector are gaining pace, supported by rising oil prices and heightened activity across the non-hydrocarbon segment,” he said. “Public-private partnerships have a key role to play in the Kingdom’s economic transformation, facilitating the rollout of essential projects that are needed to support industrial activity. I’m delighted that we’ve been able to offer audiences an insight into the water management industry’s efforts to establish these collaborations and the part that decisions to adopt best practices have played in their success.”