Saudi Arabia launches new industrial incentives to attract investors

Saudi Arabia has unveiled its second phase of a standardized program aimed at enhancing industrial incentives to attract high-value investments in the Kingdom. Khalil Ibn Salamah, the Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources for Industrial Affairs, made the announcement during the Saudi Industry Forum held in Dhahran. This initiative focuses on supporting the government’s aims to drive investments in priority sectors while emphasizing the private sector's involvement in the National Industrial Strategy, expected to expand domestic production and foster economic diversification. As part of the initiative, Saudi Arabia is currently supervising over 1,900 industrial projects with a total investment of SR380 billion, with a significant portion of these investments located in the Eastern Province. The government is collaborating with the Ministry of Energy to incorporate 20 new materials into the incentive program by 2025, a move anticipated to have a transformative effect on downstream industries. Fahad Al-Jubairy, the Assistant Deputy Minister for Sectoral Strategies and Regulation, highlighted the chemicals sector’s pivotal role, expecting it to represent more than half of the economic impact projected by the National Industrial Strategy by 2035. At the forum, speakers emphasized the importance of digital technologies in enhancing productivity within the industrial sector, with projections suggesting improvements ranging from 15% to 25%. The integration of advanced technologies aims to significantly transform Saudi Arabia’s industrial landscape over the next ten years. Notably, measures being taken include establishing a robust digital infrastructure and launching initiatives like Aramco's Digital Company, which focuses on artificial intelligence and smart industrial applications to modernize operations and improve efficiency. Additionally, the forum aims to align with Saudi Vision 2030, a key initiative that seeks to diversify the Kingdom's income sources and increase the industrial sector's contribution to the gross domestic product. The Saudi Industry Forum, held from June 23 to June 25 at the Dhahran International Exhibition Center, serves as a crucial platform for discussing these developments and fostering collaborative efforts among different stakeholders in the Saudi industrial sector.