JEDDAH, 15 November 2005 — Toyobo, a Japanese company, which specializes in energy and desalination projects, signed a $1 billion deal with Saudi Aramco on the last day of the Jeddah Water and Power Forum, which concluded yesterday.
Nobuya Fujiwara, chief engineer of Toyobo, said the contract for carrying out energy and water projects at an Aramco petrochemical complex in Yanbu would start in 2008, adding that the work would continue for 20 years.
He described the Yanbu project the largest in the Kingdom and the Gulf region, adding that it would apply advanced desalination systems. “The new deal with make Toyobo’s share in Saudi desalination market to 85 percent,” he added.
Toyobo has been involved in carrying out a number of water and energy projects in the Kingdom and other Gulf countries, Fujiwara said, adding that the company had invested billions of dollars in them.
Fujiwara said the Jeddah forum was instrumental in establishing contacts between the key players in water and energy sectors. “Japan had a good presence in the conference as seven major Japanese companies took part in the event,” he said. “This again shows,” he added, “how significant Saudi Arabia is as a market for these firms.”