2020 has marked the start of the second phase of delivery in Saudi Arabia’s water PPP pipeline with a new wave of desalination and wastewater treatment projects, and progress stimulating private involvement in new areas like water transmission, storage and recycling.

The successful securing of financial close on the Kingdom’s first independent sewage treatment plant, the SAR920 million ($245 million) Dammam West plant, looks set to pave the way for progress of dozens of new ISTPs. Competition within the privately financed desalination space is rapidly evolving as a result of continuous breakthroughs in cost and energy efficiency which are rewriting the fundamental rules of efficiency for the technology. Meanwhile the private sector is feeling out the risk profile for new projects involving water transmission, storage and reuse.

The pace of development in Saudi Arabia’s colossal project pipeline looks, so far, to have resisted the impact of economic troubles, low commodity prices and COVID-19. While national finances are likely to be hit by the global situation, major capital water projects – largely financed through private funding – are still hitting the market at a regular pace.

Khaled Al-Qureshi, CEO of the Saudi Water Partnership Company shares his ambitions and expectations for future developments.