Eastern Province Gov. Prince Muhammad bin Fahd will inaugurate the exhibition in the presence of oil and gas industry leaders and ministers from across the globe including Jeroen van der Veer, former chief executive of Royal Dutch Shell, and Lord Digby Jones Kt, former UK minister of state for trade and investment.

SAOGE was launched in November 2008 as the premier event for the oil and gas industry in Saudi Arabia. It was established to meet the requirements of the world’s biggest oil producer to host its own focused oil and gas show.

SAOGE 2009 saw a total increase in attendance of 23 percent from SAOGE 2008, attracting more than 6,800 industry representatives. This year, the exhibition space has been expanded by another 10 percent.

According to the event organizers, SAOGE 2010 is expected to be the largest and best attended to date with more than 260 exhibitors from over 34 countries, providing an even greater international presence with new country representation from Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Japan, Poland, Switzerland and Tunisia.

One of the newest exhibitors Rockwood International, a chemicals and advanced materials company, said: “Although based in Dubai, we have strong business relationships with our very important clients in Saudi Arabia. By participating at SAOGE 2010, we expect to meet our existing clients, meet new clients and showcase our products and services. We expect SAOGE will turn out to be the best platform for this meeting and will give the necessary boost for our plans related to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

Piero Zipoli, president of International Exhibition Service (IES), said: “In the past years, we received very positive feedback from exhibitors on the quality of the exhibition and level of exhibitors present. Exhibitors take the preparations very seriously as SAOGE offers them an ideal platform to do business, network and learn about the latest developments first hand. This year, we expect to take the interaction and collaboration to another level and hope to see an even better return for participating companies.”

Among other exhibitors is VF Imagewear, an international uniform apparel company. “As the world’s largest producer of flame-resistant protective clothing, we have been innovating for the world’s largest petrochemical and energy companies for 39 years. We are delighted to continue that tradition and bring new solutions specifically for the Gulf market.”

SAOGE has in the past attracted high-level technical experts, key industry professionals, specialists and decision makers in various sectors of the petroleum industry. It has become the largest oil and gas specific exhibition seen in over a decade in the Eastern Province.