Bechtel, a global leader in engineering, procurement, and construction, Saturday announced the appointment of Abdulrahman Al-Ghabban as country manager in Saudi Arabia. Al-Ghabban will lead Bechtel's business and operations in the Kingdom. Al-Ghabban said: "I am honored to be the first Saudi national to hold the position as country manager for one of the most respected engineering companies in the world. Bechtel has a strong footprint in Saudi Arabia and I look forward to helping advance my country's economic development with all the support that Bechtel can provide." Al-Ghabban's new leadership role reaffirms Bechtel's strong commitment to supporting Saudi Arabia reach its "Vision 2030" through the appointment of local nationals for critical positions at the company's various projects in the Kingdom. David Welch, Bechtel's president for international and government affairs, congratulated Al-Ghabban and said: "We are very proud of our decision to appoint the first Saudi national as country manager for Bechtel in the Kingdom. Bechtel has hired and trained hundreds if not thousands of Saudis over the past several decades because we realize that the strategic objectives of the Kingdom's economic vision hinges on investing in local talent." Saudi citizens comprise the highest percentage of local nationals employed by Bechtel world-wide. Al-Ghabban joined Bechtel in 2013 as business development manager for the Power business unit. In 2015, he was appointed deputy country manager for Saudi Arabia in addition to continuing his business development role. Prior to joining Bechtel, Al-Ghabban worked for more than ten years in both the public and the private sectors in Saudi Arabia. Bechtel is privileged to have been working in Saudi Arabia for over 70 years developing megaprojects from oil and gas facilities to airports and critical infrastructure projects. Earlier this year, Bechtel was awarded a contract to set up and operate the National Project Management Organization in the Kingdom's capital of Riyadh. Bechtel is also currently working on Lines 1 and 2 of the Riyadh Metro Project and recently launched a graduate training program to train and hire up to 75 students from the Riyadh College of Technology. Bechtel is one of the most respected global engineering, construction, and project management companies. It has delivered landmark projects that foster long-term progress and economic growth. Since 1898, it has completed more than 25,000 extraordinary projects across 160 countries on all seven continents. — SG
