Zain KSA Initiates 3 New Broadband Projects for Remote Areas

Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Zain KSA Initiates 3 New Broadband Projects for Remote Areas

Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) and Zain KSA signed an agreement to implement three high-speed wireless broadband projects for remote areas of the Kingdom as part of the Universal Service Fund.

The three projects are expected to provide service to more than 800,000 beneficiaries in 3,900 villages across 28 districts of Riyadh, Eastern Province, Asir Region and Makkah.

Zain KSA confirmed on Sunday that it will exert all efforts to contribute into achieving the objectives of the National Transition Program (NTP) 2020 and Vision 2030.

The agreement was signed by CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan at the presence of the Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah.

Prince Nayef lauded the efforts the communications ministry aiming at achieving NPT 2020 and Vision 2030 goals, confirming Zain's commitment to contribute in reaching those goals.

CEO of Zain KSA Sultan bin Abdulazizi al-Deghaither stated that the three high-speed broadband projects for remote areas include providing services to more than 800,000 users in 3,900 villages across 28 districts of each of Riyadh, Eastern Province, Asir Region and Makkah.

Deghaither reiterated that Zain KSA had invested heavily in developing its network, which provides high-end technologies during implementation.

These projects include the provision of high-speed broadband services to centers, villages and remote areas in various regions of the kingdom by enhancing investment in infrastructure and increasing wireless broadband networks coverage. Projects will also contribute to facilitating use of e-government services in achieving digital transformation.

Zain Saudi Arabia stocks rose 5.8 percent on Sunday after the company signed the agreement with CITC.

These developments came as CITC launched its index on monitoring the latest developments in information technology and communications sector in the Kingdom by the end of the second quarter of 2017.

According to CITC, the number of subscribers to telecommunications services which reached about 43.6 million subscriptions, of which 3.75 million are for postpaid lines, while subscriptions to mobile broadband services on mobile networks reached about 25.2 million.

The number of subscriptions to fixed-line broadband services reached 3.2 million, including DSL, fixed wireless connections, fiber optics and other wired lines.

As for the number of internet users in Saudi Arabia, CITC said that the number of Internet users in the country reached 24 million users.



Oil Falls Nearly 4% as Iran's Retaliation Focuses on Regional US Military Bases

FILE PHOTO: A meter shows the gas pressure in pipelines at oil and gas group MOL's gas transmission subsidiary in Vecses January 2, 2009.  REUTERS/Karoly Arvai (HUNGARY)/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A meter shows the gas pressure in pipelines at oil and gas group MOL's gas transmission subsidiary in Vecses January 2, 2009. REUTERS/Karoly Arvai (HUNGARY)/File Photo
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Oil Falls Nearly 4% as Iran's Retaliation Focuses on Regional US Military Bases

FILE PHOTO: A meter shows the gas pressure in pipelines at oil and gas group MOL's gas transmission subsidiary in Vecses January 2, 2009.  REUTERS/Karoly Arvai (HUNGARY)/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A meter shows the gas pressure in pipelines at oil and gas group MOL's gas transmission subsidiary in Vecses January 2, 2009. REUTERS/Karoly Arvai (HUNGARY)/File Photo

Oil prices slipped more than $3, or 4%, on Monday after Iran attacked the US military base in Qatar in retaliation for US attacks on its nuclear facilities, and took no action to disrupt oil and gas tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures were down $2.91, or 3.8%, at $74.09 a barrel by 1:13 p.m. ET (1713GMT). US West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) eased $2.8, or 3.8%, to $71.06, Reuters reported.

"Oil flows for now aren't the primary target and is likely not to be impacted, I think it's going to be military retaliation on US bases and/or trying to hit more of the Israeli civilian targets," said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital.

US President Donald Trump said he had "obliterated" Iran's main nuclear sites in strikes over the weekend, joining an Israeli assault in an escalation of conflict in the Middle East as Tehran vowed to defend itself.

Israel also carried out fresh strikes against Iran on Monday including on capital Tehran and the Iranian nuclear facility at Fordow, which was also a target of the US attack.

At least two supertankers made U-turns near the Strait of Hormuz following US military strikes on Iran, ship tracking data shows, as more than a week of violence in the region prompted vessels to speed, pause, or alter their journeys.

About a fifth of global oil supply flows through the strait. However, the risk of a complete shutdown is low, analysts have said.

A telegraphed attack on a well defended US base could be a first step in reducing tensions provided there are no US casualties, Energy Aspects said in a post.

"Unless there are indications of further Iranian retaliation or escalation by Israel/the US then we may see some geopolitical risk premium come out of the price in subsequent days," it said.

Qatar said there were no casualties from the attack on the US military base.
Iran, which is OPEC's third-largest crude producer, said on Monday that the US attack on its nuclear sites expanded the range of legitimate targets for its armed forces and called Trump a "gambler" for joining Israel's military campaign against Iran.

Meanwhile, Trump expressed a desire to see oil prices kept down amid fears that ongoing fighting in the Middle East could cause them to spike. On his Truth Social platform, he addressed the US Department of Energy, encouraging "drill, baby, drill" and saying, "I mean now."

Investors are still weighing up the extent of the geopolitical risk premium, given the Middle East crisis has yet to crimp supply.

HSBC expects Brent prices to spike above $80 a barrel to factor in a higher probability of a Strait of Hormuz closure, but to recede again if the threat of disruption does not materialize, the bank said on Monday.

Iraq's state-run Basra Oil Company said international oil majors including BP, TotalEnergies and Eni had evacuated some staff members working in oilfields.