GE highlights commitment to Middle East at Saudi Water and Power Forum

GE's participation highlights its continued growth in the region. Currently, GE is supporting major infrastructure projects in Saudi Arabia by supplying power generation and water treatment technology and services to help the Kingdom meet its energy and environmental goals.

The Kingdom's power-generation capacity and demand for a sustainable water supply is expected to increase as its population is expected to continue to grow.

Joseph Anis, GE Energy's region executive for the Middle East, said:

"We are proud of GE's role in helping the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia meet its growing need for reliable energy. We are committed to our Saudi customers and continue to grow our local presence to deliver innovative technology solutions best suited to the Kingdom's power needs. Participation in the Saudi Water and Power Forum provides an excellent opportunity to discuss technology requirements with the country's key decision makers."

GE has been active in Saudi Arabia for more than 70 years, supplying technology and service solutions to help the Kingdom meet its infrastructure needs, including power generation and water management.

GE has supplied more than 400 turbines for projects across Saudi Arabia. Notable energy projects in the Kingdom featuring GE's solutions include:
• Marafiq, the world's largest Independent Water and Power Project (IWPP). When completed, Marafiq will have the capacity to produce over 2.7 GW of power and 800,000 m³ of desalinated water per day;
• Saudi Electricity Company's PP9, the largest combined-cycle facility in the Middle East with capability to produce over 2GW of power; and
• SEC's PP8 Riyadh project which featured the shipment of GE's 1,000th advanced F-technology gas turbine.

Steve Bolze, president and CEO of GE Energy's Power & Water business, said:

"Saudi Arabia is a cornerstone of GE's growth plans for the Middle East. The company remains committed to supporting our Saudi customers' public and private sector growth by delivering reliable power and water management technology solutions and by maintaining a strong local presence in the Kingdom."

Meanwhile, GE's suite of broad portfolio of technology solutions and services are also instrumental in helping boost usable water supplies in the region. GE's solutions cover a breadth of needs including desalination, municipal, utility, industrial wastewater, process chemicals and separation, product water and residential products.

GE has teamed with Al Tamimi group to supply a rapidly deployable, mobile fleet of reverse osmosis, ultra-filtration, multi-media pretreatment and clean-in-place systems. The mobile fleet is available for industrial and municipal sites facing water scarcity and quality challenges or for sites that lack infrastructure to provide adequate water treatment.

To address the growing demand for water and wastewater treatment technologies, GE is constructing a new 7,500 sq. m chemical blending plant in Dammam to provide chemical products to the power, oil, gas and manufacturing industries, as well as municipal water and wastewater treatment sites. The chemical blending plant is expected to be operational in early 2009.

To support the region's energy and water infrastructure, GE maintains a strong local presence in the Kingdom with a workforce of more than 600 employees and offices in Jeddah, Riyadh and the Eastern Province.

GE Energy is further strengthening its local customer service with the recently announced groundbreaking of its Power Technology Center, a new service facility in Dammam, being developed in association with its joint venture partner, Ali A. Tamimi Co. Designed as a Center of Excellence, the new facility will expand GE's service and repair capabilities for customers in the Kingdom and the larger region.

GE will be exhibiting in Booth HO2 at the Saudi Water and Power Forum. Additionally, GE is participating in the Forum Strategic Conference. Dr. Jeffrey Goldmeer, fuel flexibility platform leader for GE Energy, will address delegates as part of the Fuel and Sustainability session panel on November 2, while Mr. Ali Ben Haj Hamida, commercial development leader for GE Water & Process Technologies, will take part in the Water Reuse and Wastewater Management panel on November 3.