Saudi Arabia is moving to localize 18 strategic water-sector products in a drive to secure critical supplies, cut reliance on foreign supply chains and build an export-ready industry. Drawing on decades of operational expertise, the kingdom aims to become a regional hub for developing, manufacturing and exporting water technologies. Supply security was central to selecting the 18 products, Saudi Water Authority President Abdullah Al-Abdulkarim told Asharq Al-Awsat, saying geopolitical tensions and global shifts had increased the need for stable supply chains and reliable, sustainable services. Speaking at a news conference in Riyadh on Wednesday on the sidelines of the “Localizing the Water Industry: Knowledge Transfer and Capacity Building” ceremony, Al-Abdulkarim said the authority had worked with relevant government bodies since early 2024 to identify the products. They include key components used across Saudi Arabia’s water production, transmission and distribution system. The initiative is part of a broader effort to unlock the economic and knowledge-based value the sector has built over decades, he said. $4 billion domestic market Saudi Arabia’s market for the 18 products is expected to reach about 15 billion riyals ($4 billion) by 2033, Al-Abdulkarim said. Across the Middle East and North Africa, the market is estimated at around 65 billion riyals ($17.3 billion). The opportunity could boost the water sector’s contribution to the kingdom’s trade balance, attract new industrial investment and increase local content. Saudi Arabia was once one of the world’s largest water consumers. Today, it has become an experienced operator with advanced technical expertise built through managing one of the most complex water systems in the world, Al-Abdulkarim said. That expertise is no longer limited to running the system. It is now helping drive the development of equipment and technology. The sector is developing advanced tools and indicators to track equipment performance and improve efficiency. Each machine is monitored against as many as 17 indicators daily, allowing operators to identify improvements early and raise operational efficiency. The 18 products are also closely tied to other industrial and service sectors through their inputs and requirements. Localizing them could therefore support national economic growth and deepen domestic value chains, Al-Abdulkarim said. Developing the next generation “Saudi Arabia was the largest water consumer and has now become an expert operator. It then became a source of expertise for manufacturers of the system’s various components, bringing us to a new stage in which we become a partner in developing the next generation of technologies,” Al-Abdulkarim said. The kingdom is now entering a new phase of supply-chain localization, targeting a 90% domestic supply reliability rate for key components. The goal is to strengthen the sector’s ability to withstand geopolitical and global disruptions while making the national water system more resilient and sustainable. The integrated approach could transform Saudi Arabia from a consumer of water technology into a regional platform for its development, manufacture and export, expanding the sector’s economic impact and strengthening the kingdom’s presence in regional and global markets. Localization is not solely about meeting the sector’s current needs, Al-Abdulkarim said. It is also intended to build an industrial and knowledge base capable of innovation, product development and exports. That would position the water sector as a driver of economic growth, income diversification and Saudi competitiveness in water technology. Seven factories planned Marking the shift from identifying opportunities to delivering projects, the Saudi Water Authority announced that six investment opportunities had entered the industrial implementation phase, including five new opportunities. The announcement came during a ceremony attended by ministers, senior government officials, ambassadors and chief executives. Three industrial localization agreements were signed and two factories inaugurated. The agreements provide for seven factories, with total investment across the six opportunities reaching 2.8 billion riyals ($746.6 million). The projects move the localization program from presenting opportunities to building domestic industrial and technical capacity. The initiative is being carried out with the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority, which oversees the contracting mechanism for industrial localization and knowledge transfer, and with support from the industry and mineral resources and investment sectors. It seeks to turn the water sector’s purchasing power into a manufacturing and investment engine by matching project requirements and future demand with domestic production opportunities. This gives investors and international manufacturers greater visibility over the scale of demand, encouraging them to transfer knowledge and technology and establish production in Saudi Arabia. The kingdom already has at least 70% of the production inputs required for the targeted components. Its water-sector supplier base has expanded from 739 companies in 2022 to 3,441 in 2026. Local content rose from 45% in 2020 to 68.27% in the first half of this year. Those gains strengthen Saudi Arabia’s position as an industrial base capable of rapid growth and regional and international expansion. Specialized jobs Localization will go beyond transferring production lines. It will include research and development, technology and knowledge transfer, and the skills needed to operate these industries and improve their products. The agreements require Saudi nationals to account for at least 70% of workers in specialized positions, linking industrial investment directly to the development of national engineering and technical talent. Products being localized through the contracting mechanism for industrial localization and knowledge transfer include reverse-osmosis membranes, antiscalants and membrane-cleaning chemicals. The Saudi Water Authority has also worked to meet its localization targets for energy-recovery devices, high-pressure pumps, distributed control systems and supervisory control and data acquisition systems, known as SCADA. Together, they will form an interconnected industrial and technological chain supporting water production and facility operations. Several of the components can also be used in energy, mining, agriculture and food processing, extending the impact of localization across multiple value chains. Global manufacturers The projects underscore Saudi Arabia’s growing place on the global water-technology manufacturing map and the reach of its strategic partnerships. They include four Italmatch Chemicals factories across Wa’ad Al-Shamal, Jubail and Jeddah. The Wa’ad Al-Shamal facilities will form the company’s largest industrial complex outside Italy. All four factories are scheduled to begin production in 2028. The projects also include Torishima’s high-pressure pump factory in Jeddah and Energy Recovery’s energy-recovery device factory in Dammam — the company’s only manufacturing facility outside the United States. Alfanar will operate a distributed control systems factory in Riyadh, bringing the total number of factories linked to the opportunities now under implementation to seven. From the first quarter of 2027, Energy Recovery’s Saudi factory is expected to supply about one-third of the company’s customers worldwide. Spread across several regions of the kingdom, the projects are expected to strengthen value-chain integration and increase the export potential of Saudi-made products.
