Oshkosh Defense Delivered 7,000 Military Vehicles in the Region

Saudi Arabia’s World Defense Show is witnessing wide international participation. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia’s World Defense Show is witnessing wide international participation. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Oshkosh Defense Delivered 7,000 Military Vehicles in the Region

Saudi Arabia’s World Defense Show is witnessing wide international participation. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia’s World Defense Show is witnessing wide international participation. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

John Lazar, vice president and general manager of international programs at US-based Oshkosh Defense, underlined the company’s commitment to localizing Saudi Arabia’s defense and security industries, noting that the Kingdom constituted an attractive investment environment for the transfer of technologies and industries in the sector.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Lazar pointed to agreements concluded by Oshkosh Defense to implement a number of Saudi programs in accordance with Vision 2030, in terms of knowledge transfer and localization of industries.

“The Kingdom has hosted our regional office since 1991, and we are ready to cooperate with the Saudi government in providing its needs for the defense sector equipment industries, just as we do with the US government,” Lazar said, emphasizing that the defense industry presented attractive investment opportunities with high economic returns.

His comments came on the sidelines of the World Defense Show, which is being held in Riyadh from March 6 - 9.

Oshkosh Defense is looking to strengthen its partnerships in the region through its presence in the Kingdom, Lazar said, revealing that the past years have witnessed the delivery of more than 7,500 military vehicles in the region, including a large number of vehicles to customers in Saudi Arabia.

The company will display its 4-door Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) at the exhibition, he said, highlighting Saudi Arabia’s position as an attractive market for global investments in the defense industries sector.

Moreover, Lazar noted that Oshkosh would also be participating in the World Defense Show’s Customer Experience Demonstration Program, which allows the company to provide demonstration rides in the JLTV to select military and security services.



GE Vernova Rolls Out First H-Class Gas Turbine in Saudi Arabia

In the presence of Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Minister of Energy, GE Vernova Inc. announced the successful rollout of the first H-class gas turbine unit completed at the GE Saudi Advanced Turbines (GESAT) facility in Dammam. Image courtesy: GE Vernova
In the presence of Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Minister of Energy, GE Vernova Inc. announced the successful rollout of the first H-class gas turbine unit completed at the GE Saudi Advanced Turbines (GESAT) facility in Dammam. Image courtesy: GE Vernova
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GE Vernova Rolls Out First H-Class Gas Turbine in Saudi Arabia

In the presence of Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Minister of Energy, GE Vernova Inc. announced the successful rollout of the first H-class gas turbine unit completed at the GE Saudi Advanced Turbines (GESAT) facility in Dammam. Image courtesy: GE Vernova
In the presence of Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Minister of Energy, GE Vernova Inc. announced the successful rollout of the first H-class gas turbine unit completed at the GE Saudi Advanced Turbines (GESAT) facility in Dammam. Image courtesy: GE Vernova

In the presence of Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, GE Vernova Inc. has announced the successful rollout of the first H-class gas turbine unit completed at the GE Saudi Advanced Turbines (GESAT) facility in Dammam in an official ceremony held at GESAT.

GESAT, a joint investment with Dussur, is the first facility in Saudi Arabia and the region to manufacture H-Class gas turbines and components.

The first locally completed H-Class unit is set to power the Jafurah Cogeneration Independent Steam and Power Plant (ISPP), which once operational is anticipated to be the most efficient power plant in Saudi Arabia.

By 2030, the entire Jafurah gas field is expected to produce up to 630,000 barrels of natural gas liquids and condensates, as well as over 420 million standard cubic feet (MMSCFD) of ethane per day.

The successful rollout of the locally completed gas turbine at GESAT is a significant milestone in the Kingdom’s energy sector and contributes to Saudi Arabia’s economic diversification and local skills development initiatives, in alignment with Saudi Vision 2030 goals.

The rollout underscores GE Vernova’s commitment to bringing cutting-edge technology products to support both the Kingdom’s energy needs and its sustainability goals.

President of GE Vernova in Saudi Arabia Hisham Al-Bahkali said: “We are incredibly proud of GESAT’s accomplishments in driving industrial localization within the Kingdom’s energy sector in support of Saudi Vision 2030.”

He added: “GESAT strengthens ‘Made in Saudi’ capabilities and, since 2018, has exported 200+ accessory modules for power plants generating more than 11 GW.”

Renowned for their high efficiency and performance, GE Vernova’s H-class gas turbines offer one of the most cost-effective conversions of natural gas to electricity in their class, and support flexible power generation needs across the Middle East.

“The high efficiency and hydrogen readiness of our H-class turbines can support the country’s energy transition, as the turbines can rapidly ramp up or down to support grid stability as more intermittent renewables are integrated into the energy system,” said Joseph Anis, president and CEO of GE Vernova’s Gas Power business in Europe, Middle East and Africa.

To further support the Kingdom’s economic diversification and export capabilities, GE Vernova also signed an MoU with Saudi EXIM that aims at enabling the export of goods and services of GE Vernova from Saudi Arabia through lending and insurance support from Saudi EXIM Bank.

Since inception, GESAT has been set up to deliver technology products for export from the Kingdom, and this MoU aims to further enable export projects. The signing was done by Eng. Saad Alkhalb, CEO of Saudi Exim Bank, and Hisham Al Bahkali, President of GE Vernova for Saudi Arabia.

GE Vernova spun-off from GE and began trading as an independent company on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on April 2, 2024. With approximately 55,000 wind turbines and 7,000 gas turbines, GE Vernova's technology helps generate about 25% of the world's electricity and has a meaningful role to play in the energy transition.