While Saudi Arabia holds the world's largest oil reserves, the kingdom is also taking active steps in the development of new technologies for exploiting and utilising renewable sources of energy.
As part of a three-part programme to introduce solar energy, a programme has been launched by the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) to build a solar-powered water desalination plant that could help stabilise future power and water supplies inside the country.
Water desalination is critical to providing clean drinking water around the world. Today, Saudi Arabia produces 18 per cent of the world's desalinated water. By building desalination plants that run on solar energy, the kingdom can reduce operational costs and, in turn, reduce consumer costs.
Prince Dr Turki bin Saud bin Mohammad, KACST vice-president for research institutes, says: 'The solar energy programme will reduce the cost of producing desalinated water and of generating power for use in the kingdom, an oil-dependent nation, which has launched a national energy efficiency programme.' Saudi Arabia is a prime location to harness solar energy because of its year-round sunshine.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia also continues to invest heavily in developing and expanding its information communications technologies sector. Broadband users in the kingdom have risen 10-fold since 2005 and are expected to nearly double from 3.2 million users last year to 5.9 million by 2014.
According to London-based independent research firm, Business Monitor International (BMI), Saudi Arabia has the biggest IT market in the Gulf region, with a forecast value of US$3.6 billion this year expected to rise to US$4.9 billion by 2015. BMI says government-driven investments in transportation, property construction, water facilities and power plants, could drive opportunities for IT vendors.