RIYADH, 9 October — Several foreign companies are competing to enter the Kingdom’s water desalination industry which will require a huge investment of $40 billion over the next 20 years.
The Saudi companies are mainly playing the role of agencies or marketers for the multinationals. Companies from Japan, Korea, and the United States are particularly keen to enter the industry.
A permanent committee appointed by the Supreme Economic Council is the responsible authority to receive and scrutinize the offers from both domestic and foreign companies.
Over 20 quotations from Saudi, Japanese and American companies have been received by the committee. The government is also currently studying an action plan to expedite the participation of the private sector in the construction of desalination plants.
A ministerial team representing the ministries of agriculture and water, finance and national economy, planning and the Saline Water Conversion Corporation has submitted a report to SEC on the matter after studying the major offers and meeting with Saudi businessmen and representatives of foreign companies.
The authorities proposed the investors either to build, operate and own the plants or to build operate and transfer the ownership to the private or public sector.
The government wants the private sector to undertake the Al-Shuaibah Third and Fourth Phases in the Makkah region and complete them in three years with an estimated production capacity of 380,000 cubic meters.
The Al-Jubail Second Phase, which is vital to guarantee a steady supply of water to Riyadh city with a production capacity of 380 million cubic meters is also among the top priorities of the government. The other projects include Al-Shaqiq, Baha and Qunfuda plants.
