Japan's Marubeni, Saudi's Ajlan & Bros Holding Group and Qatar-based United District Energy International (UDEI) have signed a joint venture agreement to enter the district cooling business in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The JV agreement was inked on 19 January 2023, Marubeni said in a press statement.

According to the statement, the JV will bring to the table Marubeni's know-how in infrastructure business development and operation in the Kingdom; the know-how of UDEI, which has extensive experience in district cooling; and the local network of the Ajlan & Bros Holding Group to meet local demand.

It said the demand for district cooling is expected to expand due to factors such as continuous population growth and urbanisation, vigorous real estate development, and increased motivation for energy conservation. 

(Writing by SA Kader; Editing by Anoop Menon)
(anoop.menon@lseg.com)