Minister of Transport and Logistic Services and Chairman of the Saudi Railway Company (SAR) Eng. Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser today inaugurated the virtual "Railway Industrial Opportunities Forum" under strategic patronage of the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NIDLP) and a wide participation of local and international industrialists, interested people and experts in the railway sector. The minister said that the forum's launch of the first pack of the economic and industrial opportunities, whose anticipated investment volume exceeds more than SAR 1 billion, will provide a qualitative advantage and added value not only for the transport sector, but also for supportive sectors that complement the railway industry. He noted that the forum seeks to expand partnership opportunities between the public and private sectors and develop the railway infrastructure according to the railway plans over the next period, which aims at opening the market for new operators and increasing the participation of the private sector in shipping operations and trips for transporting passengers and assets. He also pointed out that the forum is held after one year of completing operations of restructuring the railway sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under SAR's umbrella in a phase that the transport and logistic services system, thanks to the support of the wise leadership, realizes several and diversified achievements in various sectors of the system. The minister also stressed that the expansion plan of the railway over the next years seeks to increase the lengths of railways with over additional 8,000 kilometers to realize local and regional connection in a way that doubles the capabilities of transport through passenger and cargo trains and adopt modern technologies and advanced technological solutions that contribute to reducing the environmental impact of transport through trains, increasing the competitiveness of Saudi products and boosting the efficiency of supply chains, stressing that SAR– with its cumulative expertise and big capabilities through its three grids spanning over lengths exceeding 5,500 kilometers (North Train, East Train and Haramain High Speed Rail) – managed to carry more than 33 million passengers and over 70 million tons of minerals and goods over the past 10 years, which means shifting more than six million trips on trucks, which reflected on reducing the number of accidents on roads and reducing the number of deaths by over 50% during the past five years. For his part, SAR CEO Dr. Bashar Al-Malik said that the industrial opportunities offered in the forum are the result of meeting local needs based on studies conducted by SAR in a way that matches its strategic goals and several important programs of the Saudi Vision 2030, such as NIDLP, Doyof Al Rahman Program (DARP), and Quality of Life Program, among others, stressing the company's willingness to overcome all challenges in partnership with all government sectors and take necessary decision towards localizing the railway industry. Al-Malik urged the private sector to invest these opportunities as main partners in a vital and promising sector, noting that localizing the railway industry is no longer an option rather than a strategic goal that we seek to realize with determination. The forum witnessed offering industrial opportunities in the railway sector, the top of which are manufacturing train cars, train wheels, engine spare parts and towing engines, and railways.
