The King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE) is a “pioneering step” and is a demonstration of King Abdullah's forward planning regarding the country's energy needs. This is the view of Engineer Khaled Al-Faleh, Saudi Aramco President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He said the city will complement the aims of Saudi Aramco and its long-term strategy. This will mean that in future there will be a diverse source of energy for the future demands of the country. He said that the Kingdom has many scientists who can work in the atomic industry. Al-Faleh was speaking following the signing of an agreement on Wednesday between King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) and Pressgen Energy Company Limited (one of the companies of Weatherford International). This was an agreement to establish a new center for the company in Dhahran Techno-Valley (DTV), which is an affiliate of the university. Al-Faleh said the Dhahran Techno-Valley Center brings together pioneering companies in the oil and gas industry in terms of production, treatment and refining. Saudi Aramco would benefit greatly from the center, he said. Dr. Khaled Bin Saleh Al-Sultan, President of KFUPM said the agreement enables the company to be present in DTV to continue its research and development in the oil and petrochemical industries and to cooperate with other companies present in the valley. He added that the companies now present in the Valley are large international concerns that “we are striving to cooperate with to develop new technologies that will benefit the Kingdom and the world”. In the next three years the DTV will be a center for many research and development activities, Al-Sultan added. The university is determined to develop the Valley's utilities and infrastructure. A large building, and other infrastructure, will be constructed for the Valley's administration, he said.
