Deal signed to train, employ 15 Saudi women as desalination plant technicians

Deal signed to train, employ 15 Saudi women as desalination plant technicians

RIYADH: A deal to train 15 Saudi women as desalination plant technicians has been signed with a multinational utility company. The Rabigh-based Higher Institute for Water and Power Technologies inked the agreement with ENGIE on Thursday during a ceremony in Riyadh. The two-year program will see participants receive theoretical and practical hands-on training in water desalination, power generation, maintenance, and operations. On successful completion of the course, the women will be employed as full-time operations technicians at Yanbu 4 or Jubail 3B, ENGIE’s Saudi reverse osmosis desalination plants. Tariq Al-Shamrani, executive managing director of the HIWPT, and Turki Al-Shehri, ENGIE’s chief executive officer in Saudi Arabia, penned the deal in the presence of Saudi Water Partnership Co. CEO Khaled Al-Qureshi. Al-Qureshi said: “As part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 to build a bright, vibrant, and thriving economy, it is essential that our nation’s youth are provided with the right education, training, and opportunities to unlock their talent.” Al-Shamrani said: “Female empowerment is instrumental to realizing our nation’s ambitions, and we are delighted to launch together with ENGIE a unique program targeted at fresh Saudi women graduates, which will equip them with the skills required for a career in the desalination