Who Was Who at SWPF 2009?

Samer Mazloum, deputy general manager, WETICO
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Siemens
Joerg Drescher, KSA corporate communications director

What projects is Siemens working on in Saudi Arabia?
We’re providing steam turbine generator units at SWEC’s turnkey combined steam power plant and desalinisation facility in Riyadh.

Our divisions have also: won a contract for end-customer SWCC to provide the equipment for a long-distance pipeline; launched a new mobile system for reverse-osmosis water treatment, which has been piloted exclusively by Saudi Aramco; and are working on the electrical transmission and distribution works for the first phase of King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC).
 
Why is Siemens sponsoring SWPF 2009?
We think that this event is very much related to Siemens’ mission in the Saudi market, and it gives us a great opportunity to maximise Siemens’ business success by creating closer partnerships with our customers.

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What are you highlighting at the event in particular?
Siemens offers a broad spectrum of environmental technologies, including solar thermal power plants and photovoltaic plants. Solar thermal power plants have been employed to generate green electricity for years and are now experiencing a boom.

The market for solar thermal power plants will soon grow at a rapid pace and the interest of our traditional customers in the energy sector in this promising future-oriented technology will grow significantly.

Wartsila
Nomi Ahmad, regional director

What projects are you working on at the moment in Saudi Arabia?
Wartsila has been a leading provider of HFO-fired power plants for the industrial sector with an installed base of over 1,200MW. We continue to see activity in various sectors but during the last year, we have seen increased interest in mid-range 150-300MW projects

Why is Wartsila sponsoring SWPF 2009?
We want to create public debate to discuss other options that are being adopted by the world’s leading electric utilities.

By having certain power generation technology earmarked for centralised base load generation, and others earmarked to handle the kingdom’s varying load curves, the overall cost of generation can be reduced, as can be the fuel usage and hence the carbon footprint. Sponsoring SWPF is a good way to start that dialogue in KSA.

Can you list the major challenges for the Saudi utilities market facing at the moment?
What fuels will be available for power generation in the future? What be the effect of the liberalisation that ECRA is planning? How far does the role of the private sector go? Will there be any sort of tariff reforms? How long will the subsidies last?

Koch Membrane Systems
Deepak Raina, regional manager

What projects are you working in the Kingdom?
Koch Membrane Systems (KMS) is an approved vendor and a regular supplier to many of the government agencies, such as SWEC, Ministry of Water and Saudi Aramco, as well as smaller companies.

At the moment, we are working on an MBR wastewater treatment project in Rabigh for Saudi Aramco. We won this contract back in March and it should be completed by end-year or early 2010. In the Eastern Province, we are hopeful of winning a 60,000 cubic metre MBR plus RO contract for the Hassa Irrigation and Development Authority (HIDA).

Why are you exhibiting at SWPF this year?
In my experience, it’s been a popular show, with a good mix of private and public participants. For us, it’s a great opportunity to showcase the new developments we have in our products, and the response we’ve had in the two previous years has been excellent.

What are the challenges?
As the private sector has become more involved in BOOT and PPP contracts, finance has obviously become a bit of an issue in the current environment. It can be a challenge to get the right mix that will satisfy both the client and the bidders.