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Marafiq, Austrian Company Sign Deal to Expand Wastewater Treatment Plant in Jubail

Marafiq, Austrian Company Sign Deal to Expand Wastewater Treatment Plant in Jubail
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Marafiq, Austrian Company Sign Deal to Expand Wastewater Treatment Plant in Jubail

Marafiq, Austrian Company Sign Deal to Expand Wastewater Treatment Plant in Jubail

Marafiq, Power and Water Utility Company for Jubail and Yanbu announced Wednesday the signing of a deal, worth half a billion riyals, with an Austrian company to expand wastewater treatment plant in eastern Saudi Arabia.

In a statement obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, Marafiq said its President and CEO Abdullah al-Buainain signed the contract with VA TECH WABAG GmbH Company to expand the ninth Sanitary Wastewater Treatment Plant in Jubail.

"This step reflects the company's commitment to its ambitious plans to expand its Sanitary Wastewater Treatment Plant (SWTP-9) and keep up with the population growth in Jubail and its industrial city," the company said.

The expansion of the plant includes independent treatment work to be designed and constructed to treat sewage and solid waste removal.

The plant will use basic processing techniques to remove grease and solid objects.

“Marafiq is confident in providing world-class utility facilities to the new wave of growth for the Saudi Vision 2030 industrial ventures,” stressed Buainain.

“We are extremely honored to have been awarded the contract to expand SWTP-9 Stage six under the leadership of Marafiq,” said CEO of VA TECH WABAG GmbH Deep Raj Saxena.

“We are confident that we will be capable to implement the project and meet Marafiq’s expectations,” he added.

Marafiq is owned by a number of Saudi economic sectors, including Aramco, the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, SABIC, the Public Investment Fund and private sector investors.

It was founded on January 1, 2003, with shares worth SAR 2.5 billion.

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WTO Chief Economist Views Geopolitical Tensions as Main Risk to Int'l Trade

Ships and containers are seen at a Chinese port. Reuters file photo
Ships and containers are seen at a Chinese port. Reuters file photo
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WTO Chief Economist Views Geopolitical Tensions as Main Risk to Int'l Trade

Ships and containers are seen at a Chinese port. Reuters file photo
Ships and containers are seen at a Chinese port. Reuters file photo

Geopolitical tensions, notably those in the Middle East, remain the main risk to international trade, World Trade Organization (WTO) Chief Economist Ralph Ossa has said.

Escalating Middle East tensions could lead to supply shortages and a resulting spike in oil prices, Ossa told Xinhua news agency. "Increased oil prices would then affect macroeconomic activity and also international trade."

In a report released in early October, the WTO projected global merchandise trade volume to grow by 2.7 percent in 2024, a slight increase from its April forecast of 2.6 percent.

One significant update in the new report is the regional outlook. "We see Asia doing stronger than we had expected ... Europe was doing weaker than we had expected," said Ossa, adding that "Asia continues to be the main driver of international trade, both on the import side and the export side."

Meanwhile, exports in Asia are expected to grow by 7.4 percent in 2024 compared with a 4.3 percent rise in imports, he said.

"We were expecting a recovery of trade in April, and continue to expect a recovery of trade today, (which) is in large part due to the normalization of inflation and the corresponding easing of monetary policy," Ossa said.

China showed a strong performance on the export side, and the recent stimulus policy carried out by the Chinese government could prop up domestic demand in China and help rebalance international trade, he said.

In order to tackle multiple challenges, Ossa called for defending the multilateral trade system with the WTO at its core, adding that it is also important to make the WTO fit for the 21st century.

Speaking on the impact of artificial intelligence, Ossa highlighted AI's potential to reduce trade costs, overcome language barriers, and expand digitally delivered services.