Relationships matter

Company representatives will do well to get busy mingling at conferences.

 With the lethargy of Ramadan behind them, the executives of utilities and the power and water companies are now bracing themselves for the busy conference season. There will be plenty to discuss for the well-rested delegates.

On a general level, the relentless demand for power and water ensures that utilities are busy showing contracts on international companies with multi-billion dollar contracts.

More specifically, nuclear power is the theme that is crystallising from the power generation story.

In September, Kuwait became the latest country to reveal is nuclear plans. Having signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with France earlier this year to ready the sheikdom for the atom, it is now known that Kuwait intends to have four reactors online by 2022.

Apart from attention grabbing headlines, another sub plot is at play here.

The Franco-Kuwaiti MoU was the result of a concerted effort on behalf of the French government to boost the business prospects of its nuclear industry in the region. Even President Sarkozy was not too busy to stop by in 2009, despite being busy trying to convince Abu Dhabi’s rulers to choose France’s European Pressurised Reactor (EPR) for their first foray into nuclear power generation.

Depite high hopes, the French were ultimately unsuccessful here, with the contract being awarded to South Korea’s Kepco.

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