Saudi Electricity puts US $28bn into the grid

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has earmarked US $28 billion over the next three years to add 13,000 MW to meet rising demand in the Arab world’s largest economy.

“We already have major projects under construction now,” confirmed SEC CEO Ali Al-Barrak.

The move forms part of an overarching plan to invest $70 billion by 2018 to add 25,000 MW and match demand spurred by a $400 billion, five-year government-spending programme and a burgeoning population.

The Saudi population has tripled in the last 30 years to about 25 million, and the growth will probably continue at about 2% a year, because almost half the population is younger than 20 years old, according to HSBC Holdings.

Saudi Arabia’s electricity use may quadruple to 140 GW a year by 2032, according to forecasts from the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals.