RIYADH, 19 February 2004 — A national committee of spare parts manufacturers will be set up soon to boost local production, since 95 percent of spare parts are currently imported.
The decision to establish the national committee was taken at the concluding session of a symposium on “Opportunities for Spare Parts Manufacturers” held at the King Faisal Hall here yesterday.
The Kingdom’s spare parts industry is estimated at SR2 billion a year.
The two-day symposium, which attracted more than 150 representatives from the spare parts industry, was opened by Deputy Minister of Water and Electricity Abdullah Al-Hussain. The final session was chaired by Abdullah Al-Azaz, general manager of the Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC).
The house also decided to conduct a survey on the spare parts that could be locally manufactured on the strength of the resources in the Kingdom and to chalk out strategic plans to increase production at competitive prices.
In order to maintain international standards of the products, it was also felt that the manufactured spares should be approved by the Saudi Arabian Standards Organization (SASO).
The delegates called for firm action against the importers of imitation spare parts that jeopardize the local industry. In order to make the industry more viable, it was recommended that the authorities should relax the existing regulations on investments and ease the payment procedures of the government and semi-governmental organizations.
Muhammad S. Bashenini of Olayan Descon Industrial Company said giant users of spares such as Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabian Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) and SWCC should encourage the local industry by purchasing spares manufactured here. He recommended manufacturing companies subsidize the training of young Saudis and pay an extra five percent import duty on raw materials.
