Saudi Arabia will need to invest over $200 billion into its desalination and power generation programs in the next 15 years amid high demand of the growing population and the construction of mega projects. Equally important though is the need to ensure environmental and economic sustainability at all phases of development programs. Against this backdrop, the Fourth Saudi Water and Power Forum will be held on Nov. 1-4, 2008 at the Jeddah Hilton Hotel under the patronage of the Governor of the Makkah Region, with the support of the Ministry of Water & Electricity, SEC, SWCC, SAGIA, among others. Building on last year's success, SWPF 2008 is dedicated to companies and investors aiming to capitalize on additional 30 GW of power generating capacity targeted by the Saudi Arabia's Water and Electricity Ministry for 2020. The figure will double the current installed capacity of 29.1 GW at a cost of an estimated $90-100 billion. In addition, the Kingdom's Saline Water Conversion Corp. (SWCC) has estimated that through 2020, the country will need to spend $50 billion on water projects, many integrated with new power generation capacity, in order to meet the Kingdom's equally rapidly growing water demand. The forum will highlight the investment opportunities, sustainable development (environmental & economic), innovation and emerging technologies in the Kingdom. At a time of huge investment in the utilities sector, SWPF 2008 strategic forum will provide unique perspectives on the best investment strategies, the key uncertainties and most appropriate risk mitigation tools for water and power projects in the Kingdom. Dr. Adil Bushnak, the forum chairman, said “bringing together Saudi and international investors, SWPF has become a crucial tool in the development of Saudi Arabia's water and power sectors." "We have introduced a new focus this year specifically on sustainability, incorporating environmental and economic issues. With such a high interest last year for the Award for Innovation, we have introduced an additional Award for Excellence,” he added. The Minister of Water & Electricity Abdullah Al-Hussayen said “investment in the Saudi water & power sectors has reached a critical period, with over $200 billion required over the next 15 years. We welcome the support of this event as a forum to discuss investment opportunities within the Kingdom.” Throughout the 4-day event, there are valuable networking opportunities for delegates to meet their peers and do business. The forum will also tackle investment opportunities in independent water and power projects, financial attractiveness of projects in water and power sectors. Participants would also assess the launch of GCC interconnection grid, the future of public private partnerships in Saudi Arabia, modern techniques aiming to reduce the use of water, waste management issues and environmental criteria for such projects. __
