Saudi Arabia Signs 3 MoUs to Develop Local Water Valve Industry

The Saudi National Water Strategy 2030 aims to address major challenges by benefitting from previous and ongoing studies. Asharq Al-Awsat
The Saudi National Water Strategy 2030 aims to address major challenges by benefitting from previous and ongoing studies. Asharq Al-Awsat
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Saudi Arabia Signs 3 MoUs to Develop Local Water Valve Industry

The Saudi National Water Strategy 2030 aims to address major challenges by benefitting from previous and ongoing studies. Asharq Al-Awsat
The Saudi National Water Strategy 2030 aims to address major challenges by benefitting from previous and ongoing studies. Asharq Al-Awsat

As part of Saudi Arabia’s endeavor to support, strengthen and develop the local industry for the production of water valves, the National Water Company (NWC) concluded on Tuesday MoUs with three national companies, namely Saudi Amicon, Saudi Pipe Systems (SPS) and the AVK Saudi Valve Manufacturing Company.

The MoUs were signed by Eng. Nemer Alshebl, CEO-designate of the National Water Company, with Firas Al-Harbi, CEO of Amicon Saudi Arabia Ltd., Mohammed Al-Enezi, General Manager of the Saudi Pipe Systems Factory Ltd., and Mads Helge, General Manager of the AVK Saudi Valves Manufacturing Company Ltd.

Alshebl said that the MoUs concluded with the three companies would contribute to strengthening the local content, supporting the national industry of water valves, and raising quality efficiency, in accordance with the company's standards and procedures.

He added that the agreements came in line with the national water strategic directions, which give priority to national factories to meet the company’s needs, project components, and supply chains, in a way that benefits the national economy through local goods, assets and technology.

The Saudi National Water Strategy 2030 aims to address major challenges by benefitting from previous and ongoing studies, and to reform the water and sanitation sector by ensuring the sustainable development of resources in the Kingdom, while providing high quality services at reasonable prices.

Meanwhile, representatives from the Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC), participated in the Cairo International Water Week, where they presented the Corporation’s innovative solutions for resource sustainability and environmental security, as well as recent initiatives to shift to clean energy and green hydrogen.

SWCC representatives also highlighted the importance of green hydrogen as an essential element in any de-carbonization strategy, which they said would become competitive in terms of cost by mid-2030, according to official international indicators.

SWCC revealed that the demand for green hydrogen was expected to witness a rapid increase, to reach 21% of the world’s total final energy consumption by 2050.



Gold Set for Weekly Drop; Traders Await US Inflation Data

Gold bars from the vault of a bank are seen in this illustration picture taken in Zurich November 20, 2014. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo
Gold bars from the vault of a bank are seen in this illustration picture taken in Zurich November 20, 2014. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo
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Gold Set for Weekly Drop; Traders Await US Inflation Data

Gold bars from the vault of a bank are seen in this illustration picture taken in Zurich November 20, 2014. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo
Gold bars from the vault of a bank are seen in this illustration picture taken in Zurich November 20, 2014. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo

Gold prices rose on Friday, but were set for a weekly decline after the Federal Reserve signalled a slowdown in rate cuts next year, while focus shifted to a key US inflation print due later in the day.
Spot gold was up 0.5% at $2,606.19 per ounce, as of 0821 GMT, but has lost about 1.5% so far this week.
US gold futures was 0.5% higher at $2,620.60, Reuters said.
Gold is consolidating as "investors await Trump to resume office next year and the Fed will also go meeting by meeting, considering the data development and seeing what is part of Trump's trade policy," said Soni Kumari, a commodity strategist at ANZ.
Investors now await the core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) data, the Fed's preferred inflation measure, for further clues on the US economic outlook.
The Fed cut rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday, but the cautious note struck in its economic projections and expected slowdown of rate cuts pushed gold to its lowest level since Nov. 18.
Data showed on Thursday that the US economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter, while jobless claims also slipped more than anticipated, reinforcing expectations that the central bank will take a cautious approach to policy easing.
A slightly more hawkish set of the Fed's regional bank presidents will become voters on its rate-setting panel in 2025, raising the chance that any further rate cuts next year could spur more dissents like the one seen from the head of the Cleveland Fed.
Higher rates dull the appeal of the non-yielding asset.
According to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao, spot gold may retest support at $2,582 per ounce.
Spot silver gained 0.1% to $29.06 per ounce but was headed for its worst week since April.
Platinum dropped 0.2% at $921.50 and palladium rose 0.5% to $910.63. Both the metals were poised for weekly losses.