Mr. Saleh Bin Nasser Al-Jasser, Saudi Arabia's Transport Minister and Chairman of the Saudi Railway Company (SAR), has unveiled a series of economic and industrial opportunities worth more than 1 billion riyals ($266.6 million) as the country looks to attract private partners to its expanding railway sector.

The opportunities were outlined by Al-Jasser during the launch of the Virtual Rail Industry Opportunities Forum on March 17 as part of the National Industrial Development and Logistics Plan (NDLP). The minister said the forum aims to expand cooperation opportunities between the public and private sectors, including the development of railway infrastructure. He also said the network could open up to private cargo and passenger carriers in the future.

During the forum, Al-Jasser announced plans to expand the Saudi railway network by more than 8,000 kilometers, double freight and passenger capacity, and employ modern technologies and advanced technological solutions to reduce the railway's environmental impact. He said the country's 5,500km network had transported more than 33 million passengers and more than 70 million tonnes of cargo in the past 10 years.

SAR CEO Dr Basharbin Khalid Al-Malik encouraged the private sector as a partner to invest in opportunities, saying that improving the localisation of the railway industry that supports the network is now a strategic goal. He added that since the merger of the Saudi Railway Organization and Saudi Railways in 2021, SAR has been working to develop local industrial capabilities by encouraging partnerships and knowledge transfer with international manufacturers.

The District also called for expressions of interest in designing, supplying and maintaining its next generation of intercity passenger trains. The first trains will enter service in 2025 and will increase the capacity of the Riyadh-Daman line. Additional batches can be ordered for the Riyadh-Hail section of the North-South Railway. The trains will be equipped with ETCS, and the contract includes 10 years of maintenance. On March 14, SAR awarded CAF a five-year, €200 million service contract, which includes technical support for 18 push-pull trains built by Saudi operator CAF in Riyadh-Daman and Riyadh- Gurayat operates online. Keywords: engineering construction, engineering news

The contract also includes an agreement to establish a Joint Engineering Department Engineering Centre of Excellence. The department will train SAR staff in the necessary operation and maintenance skills of the train fleet and adapt SAR's facilities to overhaul trains delivered in 2015.Editor/XingWentao