Under the leadership of Mr. Jeremy Goad, UK Trade and Investment brought a delegation of companies to the Kingdom specializing in the environment, water and wastewater to participate in a seminar here last Saturday. The British government is keen to develop their close relationship with Saudi Arabia, to encourage UK exporters to do business in the Kingdom and to promote technological and commercial partnerships. Saudi Arabia's planned expansion and development of water and wastewater services, as well as environmental services, has been noted. It is being achieved through close partnerships between public sector and private sector organizations. The UK delegates on this visit represent some of Britain's best environmental, water and wastewater companies and subsidiaries. These companies – 17 in all - are able to provide a wide range of skills, services and products. Building on more than 150 years' experience in managing water supplies of a very high standard, and providing wastewater treatment, British Water has been appointed by UK Trade and Investment to manage the organization of this visit, which will also include Riyadh and Dammam. The Jeddah seminar was held at the British Consulate on 31st January, where Ms. Kate Rudd, HM Consul General welcomed the delegates and a full house of guests from the expatriate and Saudi communities. The opening speaker was Eng. Nasser Al-Aamry, Senior Manager Privatization Support at the Saudi Ministry of Water and Electricity. He highlighted the business opportunities in the Saudi water sector, and the current and upcoming water projects, all under the umbrella of the National Water Company (NWC). He pointed out that there are 30 more desalination plants to be constructed; in addition, other water and wastewater projects are ongoing in Riyadh and all over the Kingdom with 49 in Riyadh alone. There are also sewage projects and plans to collect wastewater for treatment so that it can be used in parks, industry, agriculture and other non-consumable areas. Companies Veolia and Suez have already been awarded contracts for water services and sewage collection in Riyadh and Jeddah respectively, and the NWC will be tendering for all the other major cities in the Kingdom, including Greater Dammam and Khobar, Madina, Makkah, and Taif – around 17 cities in all. Regarding wastewater treatment plants, the NWC is initially focusing on Riyadh and Jeddah in different phases, followed by Madina, Makkah and Dammam. The Kingdom currently uses only six percent of used water and the NWC plans to increase this to more than 80 percent. Bulk users of fresh water – such as Saudi Aramco – will be targeted for the collection of wastewater. NWC will co-ordinate with the private sector and establish a Project Company to award contracts for these various projects. Dr. Ahsanullah Khan from the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment (PME, previously MEPA) then spoke about business opportunities in environmental issues. He expressed concern that polluted water is affecting the environment and there were issues with hazardous and chemical waste, although PME established environmental regulations in 2001 with roles and responsibilities of various sections clearly defined. Dr. Khan said there are opportunities in wastewater recycling and reuse; hazardous and industry waste; hospital waste; solid waste and source emissions from industry. Some of the UK delegates then responded with brief presentations of their areas of expertise. Dr. Garry Holland introduced the new technology of HYBACS, (Hybrid Bacillus Activated Sludge) a wastewater treatment system of Blue Water Bio Company. This was pioneered in South Korea and converts suspended polluted matter into dissolved polluted matter by imposing the life cycle of bacilli on the wastewater. The process has a reduced environmental impact in that it uses 50 percent of the power of an activated sludge plant, and can be applied to a varied range of wastewater such as domestic sewage, meat processing and slaughterhouse waste, and dairy waste. Water leakage in Saudi Arabia was revealed to be of immense proportions by Mr. Lloyd Martin of Severn Trent Services International (STSI). He explained that it was around 1000 mega liters a day - the equivalent of more than nine of the King's Fountain in Jeddah running at the same time! STSI is a major private water and wastewater company and is listed in the FTSE-100; it provides water and wastewater services to 11 million people in Europe and the USA, including eight million in the industrial heartland of England. It is currently seeking projects in the GCC. Remedies to water leakage were introduced by Stuart McAllister of Utility Technology Services who described how to repair water pipes that were under pressure without having to close down and drain the entire system. The UK has a very old system in many areas so they have well-developed repair inspection and repair methods in place. UTS manufacture all the necessary pipe work and fittings to carry out these complex tasks. Mr. John Lawton of Alvan Blanch pointed out that there are tens of thousands of farms in Saudi Arabia, all producing waste. He explained the recycling possibilities that were currently unexplored, such as from the millions of date palms around the country. If gathered up, this could all be reconstituted into locally produced fiber board for use in furniture manufacture and the building industry. Collection and transportation is a major stumbling block, but he envisions that a cooperative approach could work. Alvan Blanch is already well established in the Middle East with major recycling projects, such as composting, already running on many farms in the Kingdom.
