Saudi Arabia has identified 59 initiatives to generate 143 billion Saudi riyals ($42 billion) of revenues (cumulatively) via asset sales and Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) by 2025, according to a recently launched report titled "Privatisation Program 2025".

The report was released last week by the National Centre for Privatisation & PPP (NCP), the Kingdom’s nodal agency for privatisation.

The government has set a cumulative target of 14 billion riyals for efficient government spending [cost savings] during the five-year period through partnerships.

In 2020, 13.46 billion riyals of investments went into PPP, while revenues from asset sales were at 2.75 billion riyals.

The 59 initiatives and services for privatisation by 2025, range from desalination, wastewater treatment plants and airports to health diagnostic services and TV broadcasting towers, the report said.

Project focus

A total of 41 PPP initiatives would be offered in water, transportation, public transportation, healthcare, municipalities, and education sectors during the five-year period while asset sales include the Second Milling Company and the Fourth Milling Company; three water production plants in Yanbu, Al Khobar and Al Shuaiba; Water Transmission and Technologies Company (WTTCO) assets; TV broadcasting towers and central cooling plants.

Since its launch in 2018, the privatisation programme has identified 17 sectors and 176 initiatives, the report said. It also disclosed that 98 initiatives have been approved; 78 are under review; 32 have been launched and 18 have been awarded.

The privatisation program aims to increase local and foreign private sector’s contribution to Saudi Arabia’s GDP from 40 percent (2016) to more than 65 percent by 2030.

The oil-rich kingdom has embarked on an ambitious privatisation drive as part of its Vision 2030, which envisages to diversify from oil revenues and boost its revenue, economic development, business environment and narrow its budget deficit.

(Reporting by Anoop Menon; Editing by Seban Scaria)

(anoop.menon@refinitiv.com)

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