Commenting on the opening of the Saudi British Energy Week in Dammam today, Abdulrahman bin Rashed Al-Rashed, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Eastern Region, said the Eastern Region is considered Saudi Arabia's industrial capital, citing its host of nearly half industrial investments and contribution of more than 60% to the country's gross domestic product. In a speech to mark the opening of the event, organized by the chamber, Al-Rashed said the Saudi British exhibition comes at a time Saudi Arabia is witnessing the establishment of a number of giant energy projects in the Eastern Region, pointing to enegy facilities worth billions of dollars in Jubail and Ras Al-Khier, led by Saudi Aramco. He said Saudi Arabia hosts more than 200 British companies engaged in joint ventures with Saudi counterparts. For his part, John Jenks, the British ambassador to the Kingdom, who is leading the British delegation to the event, said Britain, the European Union's largest producer of energy and the world's first producer of the generation of sea wind energy, has more to provide in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He drew the attention to the fact that the British investments in Saudi Arabia are estimated at $18 billion. In a key speech, David Harris, Head of the British Trade Office in Al-Khober noted that British companies are highly interested to work in different fields in Saudi Arabia, citing oil, gas, electrical energy, renewable energy, engineering development and vocational training.
