His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Emir of Madinah Region, in the presence of his Deputy, His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Khalid bin Faisal, inaugurated 21 development projects for the environment, water and agriculture system in the region at a cost of more than 7.3 billion Saudi Riyals, and laid the foundation stone for 44 projects for the environment, water and agriculture system at a cost of more than 4.2 billion Saudi Riyals, in order to serve the residents of the region and support the achievement of environmental and water sustainability according to the objectives of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.
HRH the Emir of Madinah Region extended his thanks and gratitude to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, may God Protect them, for their care for all that would provide comprehensive and developmental services in the region to enhance the quality of life for its residents and visitors.
During the ceremony, the attendees watched a documentary on the system of water, environmental and agricultural projects inaugurated by HRH the Emir of Madinah.
In his speech, Engineer Abdulrahman bin Abdulmohsin Al-Fadhli, Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture explained that the first of these projects is the construction of new water assets by the Saudi Water Authority (SWA) to enhance its resources in the region. SWA implemented the Yanbu-Medina Water Transmission System (Phase IV) project with a transmission capacity of 550,000 cubic meters per day, and the Yanbu Phase III gas feed line project with a production capacity of 640 million standard cubic feet (SCF) of gas per day.
Minister Al-Fadhli pointed out that the inaugurated projects included a project implemented by the Saudi Water Partnerships Company (SWPC) in partnership with the private sector to tender, implement, and operate the desalinated water production plant project in Yanbu (Phase IV), with a production capacity of 450,000 cubic meters per day using reverse osmosis (RO) technology. It is the first project of its kind depending on clean energy and reduction of CO2 emissions, in addition to 8 projects for the National Water Company (NWC) to increase the coverage of water services and increase the efficiency of daily distribution operations in the region, and 7 projects that support the environmental services system by extending main lines and sub-networks and linking them to the system of environmental treatment plants (STPs).
The Minister explained that the National Center for Vegetation Cover Development and Combating Desertification (NCVC) implemented 3 projects, including the fencing of Al-Sahwa Park in the Al-Awniya area, including signboards and gates, a project to plant and care for 400,000 trees of local wild species, as well as the implementation of fencing works for the site, the construction of reservoirs and an irrigation network, and a project for the production of wild seedlings.
He pointed out that the Saudi Water Authority (SWA) will implement a project to enhance storage in the Madinah Region, with the aim of increasing the amount of water storage in the region. SWA also aims to reach the storage design capacity of 340,000 cubic meters of desalinated water at a cost of more than 121 million Saudi Riyals.
Engineer Al-Fadhli emphasized that these quality projects were implemented according to the best practices and technical expertise, to reflect the work of the Environment, Water and Agriculture System, according to national strategies devised to translate the Kingdom’s ambitious Vision 2030, and reflect the keenness of the country’s leaders to provide all means of decent living for its citizens and the residents on its territory.
