Saline Water Conversion Corporation Begins Privatizing Production System in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation has invited qualified firms to place their bids to acquire the majority stake in its Ras Al-Khair facility.
Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation has invited qualified firms to place their bids to acquire the majority stake in its Ras Al-Khair facility.
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Saline Water Conversion Corporation Begins Privatizing Production System in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation has invited qualified firms to place their bids to acquire the majority stake in its Ras Al-Khair facility.
Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation has invited qualified firms to place their bids to acquire the majority stake in its Ras Al-Khair facility.

Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) has invited qualified firms to place their bids to acquire the majority stake in its Ras Al-Khair (RAK) facility.

“The winning bidder will own 60 percent of RAK Project Company and take over the management, operation and maintenance,” the firm said.

It revealed that at least seven companies and consortiums have already qualified to submit their bids.

The step comes in light of the corporation’s attempts to privatize the water sector and develop the production system on a commercial level to start offering it throughout the kingdom.

The project is the first SWCC production bundle to be privatized and overseen by the Supervisory Committee for Privatization in the Environment, Water and Agriculture sector, with the participation of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, the National Center for Privatization and the Saudi Water Partnerships Company.

The SWCC, which operates desalination plants and power stations in the Kingdom, has been preparing the launch of the remaining production bundles, which include Yanbu and Shuaiba desalination assets, as well as other construction plants.

The RAK power and desalination plant is the world’s largest with production of over 1,051 million cubic meters of desalinated water per day with 2,650 megawatts of base load power.

Last week, the SWCC and the Water Transmission and Technologies Co. (WTTCO) signed a cooperation agreement to outsource management services.

The deal will boost the efficiency and organization of the water sector, as well as develop the Kingdom’s economy by adding more than SAR60 billion ($16 billion) worth of investment opportunities in water transport and storage systems by involving the private sector in funding future projects.



Gazprom, CNPC Discuss Future Russian Gas Supplies to China

A view shows a board with the logo of Russian gas producer Gazprom at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia June 5, 2024. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
A view shows a board with the logo of Russian gas producer Gazprom at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia June 5, 2024. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
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Gazprom, CNPC Discuss Future Russian Gas Supplies to China

A view shows a board with the logo of Russian gas producer Gazprom at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia June 5, 2024. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
A view shows a board with the logo of Russian gas producer Gazprom at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg, Russia June 5, 2024. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo

The heads of Russia's Gazprom and China's energy company CNPC discussed future Russian gas supplies to China during talks in Beijing, Gazprom said on Friday, as Moscow seeks stronger ties with the world's biggest energy consumer.

Russia, the holder of world's largest gas reserves, has diverted oil supplies from Europe to India and China since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022, Reuters said.

At the same time, Russia's diversification of pipeline natural gas from the European Union has been slow.

It started gas exports to China via the Power of Siberia pipeline in the end of 2019 and plans to reach the pipeline's annual exporting capacity of 38 billion cubic meters this year.

Russia and China have also agreed on exports of 10 bcm of gas from Russia's Pacific island of Sakhalin starting from 2027.

However, years of talks about the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, which would ship 50 bcm of gas per year to China via Mongolia, have yet to be concluded as the two sides disagree over issues such as the gas price.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to travel to China in early September to participate in celebrations marking the anniversary of the victory over Japan in World War II.

The trip follows Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Moscow in May.