A record number of 8,000 people visited the three-day Saudi Energy Show 2014 at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center (RIEC), organizers announced.

On behalf of Water and Electricity Minister Abdullah bin Abdulrahman Al-Hussayen, Saleh bin Hussein Al-Awaji, deputy minister for electricity, inaugurated the Saudi Energy 2014 — The International Trade Exhibition for Electricity, Power Generation, Alternative Energy, Water Technology and Lighting.

The show played host to a huge crowd of business visitors from various related industries and it also featured 314 local and international exhibitors from 28 countries that showcased latest industry developments and updates.

The premier energy platform also included a number of technical seminars that highlighted a number of major industry topics.

Saudi Energy 2014 has seen growing interest from international exhibitors, which was strongly reflected in the participation of major national pavilions from Germany, Turkey, India, China, Romania, Italy and Taiwan, among others.

The comprehensive event covered all aspects of the industry, namely electricity generation and distribution; alternative and renewable energy technologies; modern lighting products and technologies; and water and water resources management technologies.

“The Saudi market is very attractive to our exporters as it is a fast developing and high potential market for energy products,” said Costin Lianu, head of Romanian Pavilion at Saudi Energy 2014.

He said: “Through our second participation at the show, we aimed at exploring cooperation and partnership opportunities with local companies, which has seen good and satisfying results in terms of visitor quality and professionalism.”

Anita Mathews, director of Informa Energy Group, organizers of Middle East Electricity, said:

“We are very happy with the overwhelming response that we have received from this partnership with REC on Saudi Energy. Informa’s global reach and REC’s credibility and strength in Saudi Arabia have helped pave the way for a world-class event.”

The director said: “Feedback from our international exhibitors has been extremely positive and we hope this is the beginning of a very successful partnership.”