The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet's session at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Tuesday afternoon. At the outset of the session, the Cabinet commended the approval of NEOM Founding Board, chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Vice President of the Council of Ministers, Chairman of Board of Directors of Public Investment Fund, of the strategic concept of the masterplan for NEOM Bay, the first urban area to be developed in NEOM and its instructions to complete preparations and start construction work in the first quarter of 2019. The Cabinet noted what has been reviewed by the Kingdom at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2019 on the perspective of a sustainable energy future, the progress made in this field, the electricity sector will transform in the Kingdom from a system depending on oil and gas to a more diversified one, and the significance of confronting threats and dangerous challenges to life and future generations, most notably the climate change, water cleanliness, air quality and economic growth for sustainable development. The Minister of Media Turki bin Abdullah Al-Shabanah said in a statement to Saudi Press Agency following the session that the Cabinet hailed putting Saudi Aramco's gas plant in Othmaniyyah on "Industrial Lighthouses" list including the world's leading industrialization facilities applying Fourth Industrial Revolution Technologies as announced by the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Aramco is considered as the first company in the world in the oil and gas sector to join the list of "industrial Lighthouses" and the first in the Middle East honored by the World Economic Forum due to the plant's achievements in applying latest technical solutions based on advanced analysis and artificial intelligence. The Cabinet pointed to the 29th International Conference of Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs in Cairo with the participation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and ministers, scholars and Islamic leaders from 70 countries, and its recommendations and results in the service of the Islamic world in many fields. --More 16:17 LOCAL TIME 13:17 GMT 0011 www.spa.gov.sa/1877075
