RIYADH: Construction sector capacity available to Saudi Arabia must witness double-digit annual growth to cater to the Kingdom’s infrastructure expansion, according to the group CEO of France’s Egis.
Speaking in an interview with Arab News on the sidelines of the first day of the Future Investment Forum, Laurent Germain explained that foreign companies could meet this demand, particularly those from France.
The CEO clarified that such growth will help projects in the Kingdom to transition from the design to the construction phase easily.
When asked how much the construction sector needs to grow by in order to satisfy current and future demand, he replied: “I would say double digit every year. I think the capacities of the contractors should increase in Saudi Arabia, double digit, more than 10 percent per year to achieve, I would say, the transition from projects currently in design into the construction phase.”
Germain added: “I am doing my best to convince the big French contractors, and we have very big, you know, French contractors like Vinci, like Greg, Eiffage, to come more to Saudi Arabia, because I tried to convince them that the business environment is now very pro-business.”
He continued that Egis is keen on utilizing advanced technical solutions at each stage of infrastructure development to propel the Kingdom’s trajectory towards its net carbon objective.
“Using digital like the digital twin, the digital replica of an infrastructure, which allows us at the stage of the design of the infrastructure to make calculations on the impact on the greenhouse emissions,” the CEO stressed.
He added: “We need to catch up with the pace with which the country is developing, which is absolutely wonderful.”
Germain highlighted that Saudi Arabia achieved 8 percent growth in gross domestic product in 2022, exceeding other G20 countries in performance.
“This is why all the business community is now rallying at the FII,” he affirmed.
World leaders, industry titans, and global financiers are set to gather in Riyadh for the seventh edition of the FII from Oct. 24-26.
Under the slogan “The New Compass,” the attendees will discuss climate, economy and technology issues.
The FII acts as a catalyst for crucial talks around the macroeconomic challenges communities face.
This year’s conference will also shed light on the role of governments and the transformative potential of technology, education, and healthcare in shaping a more prosperous future.
