KOTRA Hosts 'Saudi Water Treatment and Waste Roadshow'

Establishing a Foundation for Cooperation on Saudi Eco-Friendly Projects

KOTRA held the 'Saudi Water Treatment and Waste Management Roadshow' on the 21st at the Swiss Grand Hotel in Seoul, together with 11 Saudi government and affiliated organizations including the Saudi Ministry of Investment and Neom, the agency announced.

The event consisted of ▲on-site inspection of waste treatment facilities ▲Saudi water treatment and waste management roadshow ▲individual consultations with domestic companies.

KOTRA Headquarters Exterior.
Photo by Asia Economy DB

The Saudi delegation visiting Korea first inspected the Unjeong Sewage Treatment Plant, a water treatment facility in Korea, and the Seoul Metropolitan Landfill Management Corporation, a waste treatment facility, on the 20th. On the 21st, the 'Saudi Water Treatment and Waste Management Roadshow' was held, where 11 Saudi government and affiliated organizations including the Saudi Ministry of Investment, Neom, and the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture explained opportunities for Korean companies to participate in Saudi projects. A total of 48 companies and about 90 people from Korea attended. On the 22nd, one-on-one consultations are scheduled with four domestic environmental technology companies that possess both water treatment and waste management technologies.

Through this event, KOTRA established a cooperative foundation to support Korean companies in securing Saudi eco-friendly projects.

Saudi Arabia is the world's largest desalination plant market and continues to invest in water treatment infrastructure due to population growth and urbanization. As of last year, the daily desalination capacity was 620,000 cubic meters, showing a 35% increase over five years since 2017. The Saudi national water company is currently undertaking projects worth 1.3 billion dollars.

In particular, the Saudi waste market aims to achieve an 85% waste reuse rate by 2035. To this end, Saudi Arabia plans to start waste separation collection from this year. The Saudi government and affiliated organizations have a strong interest in recycling technologies to strengthen waste management by sector, including household, industrial, and construction waste.

Jung Wooyoung, Head of KOTRA’s Innovation Growth Division, said, "We hope this project will serve as an opportunity for our companies to enter the Saudi eco-friendly industry sector," adding, "We will actively support our companies to secure Saudi eco-friendly projects."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.