Main topics talked about by the meeting with His Excellency Eng. Amin Al-Nasser
Asharqia Chamber hosts the president of Saudi Aramco to discuss the impact of the Corona pandemic on the business sector
Asharqia Chamber organized, in cooperation with Saudi Aramco, on Monday, 13 July 2020, an extended meeting held remotely with the participation of the President of Saudi Aramco and its chief executive officer, Eng. Amin Hassan Al-Nasser, with the business sector in a dialogue moderated by the Chairman of the Asharqia Chamber in a meeting dealing with the effects of the Corona pandemic, opportunities and challenges in the energy sector the conversation also dealt with the contracting, manufacturing, supply, and purchasing sectors, as well as several major topics related to the private sector.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Asharqia Chamber, Mr. Abdul-Hakim bin Hamad Al-Ammar Al-Khaldi, who directed the dialogue, stressed that the Chamber is keen to follow up everything that would develop the business environment in the Eastern region in particular, and the Kingdom in general, noting that the meeting of the Saudi Aramco president falls under the meetings Important and necessary, appreciating the interaction of Saudi Aramco with the Chamber and the business sector in general.
Al-Khalidi explained that the meeting reviewed a number of topics, including the program for the sufficiency and future of projects with national companies, Aramco's projects and its role in increasing employment opportunities and local content, initiatives and solutions that serve the contracting sector in light of the emerging Corona Virus pandemic, the mechanism of contractor rehabilitation and facilitating communication with them, and the acquisition deal On a 70% stake in SABIC, and the role of Saudi Aramco in environmental affairs, society, and governance.
For this part, Saudi Aramco President and Chief Executive Officer, Eng. Amin Al-Nasser said in his speech during the meeting: “Saudi Aramco’s relationship with the private sector has evolved since the company’s inception, and has become more systematic and more comprehensive and clearly focuses on the (Ektefa) program,” stressing in this regard that “ The success of this program was a reason, for the success of Saudi Aramco - in partnership with the private sector - in localizing businesses, creating job opportunities, and developing small and medium-sized enterprises, and that the "Ektefa" program proved its worth during the pandemic period, which affected the global supply chains. He also mentioned that Aramco has increased the incentive to develop small and medium companies in the equation of satisfaction by five times, and this incentive will add a desire among large companies to increase the opportunities available in their supply chains and to qualify small companies to participate, and through that, it will support the program of the sufficiency of the Asharqia Chamber initiative "Bridging"
Al-Nasser affirmed that Saudi Aramco has always been keen on its stance stemming from its responsibilities that balance trade and strategic goals and national responsibilities, adding that we are optimistic that the worst in this pandemic has become behind us and that Aramco has been subject to great challenges in the crisis, but, we were highly prepared to deal With the pandemic, because dealing with epidemics is part of the company's risk management program, and epidemics were one of the sub-risks classified as non-industrial accidents, but after the pandemic, it was reclassified to one of the main risks.
Speaking about the company’s business and projects, Al-Nasser said, “Digital transformation has played and will play an increasing role in shaping the current and future business environment and achieving more innovations and opportunities. Aramco has established a business department led by a senior-level executive to identify opportunities for digital transformation at Aramco and accelerate its implementation. This increases the company's profitability, enhances reliability, and operational efficiency. The pandemic has proven the feasibility of investing in digital transformations, and that requires the capabilities of suppliers, contractors, and commercial partners to be highly immunity. Therefore, meeting cybersecurity requirements has become a condition in qualifying and sustaining the private sector with Aramco. " Regarding pivotal projects such as the King Salman Energy City (Spark) that are being built east of Abqaiq Governorate, and the King Salman International Complex for Marine Industries and Services in Ras al-Khair, Eng. The Kingdom as a strategic center for industries in the Middle East, which is in line with the Kingdom's 2030 vision.
Regarding the challenge of climate change and its impact on the future of the oil industry, Al-Nasser pointed out that Aramco puts the climate challenge at the top of its priorities and is considered the lowest globally among other companies in the level of emissions, according to independent parties studies and that the company seeks to lead in reducing climate change emissions through the development and application of technologies and innovations. Al-Nasser has listed several areas of technical solutions that the company focuses on, including working through Aramco's research and development centers in Detroit and Paris with car manufacturers to develop the new generation of high-efficiency and low-emissions car engines. As well as the development of future fuels, which are characterized by a lower level of emissions. It also includes developing and applying carbon separation and storage techniques as well as converting harmful emissions into commercially viable materials. He also mentioned that digital transformations, the techniques of the fourth industrial revolution, and artificial intelligence will help produce more environmentally cleaner oil. Eng. Amin Al-Nasser pointed to the company's interest in the concept of transformation of the circular economy through which carbon dioxide is reduced, recycled and removed, stressing that oil will continue to play a major role in the global energy mix, despite the rise of technologies such as electric cars.
For this part, the Supreme Vice President for Technical Services in Saudi Aramco, Mr. Ahmed Al-Saadi, said that the success of the contractors is a success for Saudi Aramco, noting that the sufficiency program came as a result of joint work for many years, considering that this was the result of the proposals submitted by contractors and suppliers during the meetings between the two sides As well as during the exhibition and conference enough. He said: "We receive all the proposals with great openness, and we study them thoroughly and look at the possibility of aligning them with the satisfaction program, which leads to integration and cooperation between the company and the private sector and medium and small projects.
Al-Saadi added that pivotal projects such as King Salman Energy City and King Salman International Complex for Marine Industries and Services come to establish the infrastructure for many industries in the region, where King Salman Energy City will embrace heavy and light industries to support the energy industry. Al Saadi said: "We are in the process of establishing a complex for digital and non-metallic industries, and this would attract large companies to the region and open the way for medium and small institutions to serve and support these industries.
He added, "We started operating the International Marine Industries Company, which started on a number of projects with investors. For example, the company acquired the first tanker from sea company and it is among several tankers to be built in the complex, and the goal is to train the cadre responsible for shipbuilding in Ras al-Khair On the one hand, marine rigs, an industry that is embraced by the complex, has started manufacturing two rigs by the company Lambril, and this also feeds in the preparation and training of human cadres there, stressing that the shipbuilding and drilling rigs attract many small and medium support industries, thus creating horizons for opportunities for manufacturers in the region. to have a role in stimulating industry in the Kingdom.
Regarding the role of Saudi Aramco in mitigating the effects of the emerging Corona Virus pandemic on contractors and suppliers, Al Saadi said: “Saudi Aramco was quick to take a package of immediate measures and measures to reduce the effects of the emerging Corona Virus pandemic in several areas, including economic facilities, including the rescheduling of some Projects, restructuring of some discounts on contractors, and in stages that reach a full settlement with the main contractors due to the easing of pressures on the subcontractors. We have also implemented a system of monitoring and enforcement of payments with the main contractors to ensure that the payments reach the subcontractors, and some contract terms have been modified to allow by using bank guarantees instead of financial guarantees as well as reducing bank guarantees according to the percentage of project implementation."
Al-Saadi revealed that the pre-qualification process for contractors and suppliers is an essential measure to ensure the provision of a sufficient and appropriate group of contractors and suppliers with expertise and outstanding performance, in order to meet the company's procurement needs. Aramco's business is usually very sensitive and complex, and this requires the importance of a thorough pre-qualification process for the contractor, with the aim of ensuring that the business is performed in high quality, reliability, and safety. The qualification process includes a set of important elements of contractors and suppliers such as expertise, human resources, financial position assessment, technical ability assessment, and commercial evaluation.
In turn, the Vice President of Procurement and Supply Chain Management in Saudi Aramco, Mr. Mohammed Al-Shammari, confirmed that Saudi Aramco has equipped unified call centers and digital platforms at a high level that contribute to strengthening communication between the private sector and the company, especially in exceptional cases such as the Corona pandemic, where the Supplier Help Center was equipped to receive inquiries From the business sector and effectively responding to it to ensure that all communications with our suppliers are smooth, knowing that all such communications are tracked and monitored until the reported problems are resolved and closed.
Al-Shammari added that there is also a Saudi Aramco service center to support contractors and suppliers in the Asharqia Chamber, and centers to serve contractors and suppliers geographically dispersed in Riyadh and Jeddah to provide direct support to suppliers. Also, there are points of contract approved by the contracting contract management or the operational departments responsible for implementing these contracts. For example, during the previous year, the contracting department held periodic meetings with more than 80 companies, upon their request, to discuss several matters, most notably: qualification, registration, financial extracts, and other matters.
Al-Shammari said, "Saudi Aramco launched an initiative aimed at achieving continuous improvement in the procedures for selecting contractors and suppliers and prequalification, by taking advantage of the digital transformation and providing a single electronic portal through the SABB Arriba system to achieve pre-qualification of contractors for all services. We have started to implement These improvements to some services that will enter into force in full in 2021, which will lead to a reduction in the pre-qualification time.
For this part, member of the Board of the Asharqia Chamber and Chairman of the Industry and Energy Committee Ibrahim bin Mohammed al-sheik said during his participation that the industry sector in the region in particular and in the Kingdom in general faces many challenges after the Corona pandemic, indicating that the meeting with His Excellency the President of Aramco was tantamount to responding to many Among the questions about the future of this vital sector, especially since it is closely linked with Aramco, pointing out that the company has the necessary incentives to support the industry and energy sector during the coming period, as well as Aramco's support for the bridging program and those initiatives related to resettlement in the company's projects and purchases through the program Sufficiency.
While a member of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Contracting Committee, Hamad bin Hammoud Al-Hammad, explained during his participation in the meeting that the contracting sector is one of the most affected sectors from the effects of the Corona pandemic, because it has many practical and complex details, pointing to the unlimited government support and initiatives that helped save the construction companies. And confirming that the meeting of His Excellency the President of Aramco was awaited by many who benefited from the company's initiatives, indicating that the meeting was of great importance to the employees of the contracting sector, where he talked about very important details that benefit the sector, and disclosed the incentive initiatives presented by the company to the contracting sector to help him exceed Pandemic effects.
