CONSTRUCTION work on a major manufacturing and service plant for Siemens in Saudi Arabia is set to start this month.

The facility, based in Dammam Industrial City, will manufacture gas turbines, compressors and heat recovery steam generators, and provide repair and service works for the Saudi market.

Siemens and its local partner E A Juffali and Brothers will jointly invest a three-digit million-dollar figure in the facelift, which is expected to generate qualified local jobs and serve as a technology hub for knowledge transfer.

Last month, Siemens held a two-day meeting in Al Khobar aimed at developing a supply chain of local companies to support the construction of the new facility.

Siemens held the meeting in collaboration with Saudi Aramco and Saudi Electricity Company (SEC), whose extensive local expertise will be used to build the network of local component suppliers and contractors for the plant, Siemens said.

Suppliers selected for the project will be added to the Siemens global supplier network in the future.

“This meeting is a testimonial to our continuous efforts to strengthen local content in our projects. Working closely with Saudi Aramco and Saudi Electricity Company in building a local supplier chain network is part of our commitment to develop local expertise and human capital in the kingdom,” said Arja Talakar, CEO of Siemens in Saudi Arabia.

“Building up a domestic supplier network will enhance the mutual understanding of Siemens’ needs and supplier capabilities, establish a local supplier network with identified strategic partners, and boost Siemens innovation platform, while also identifying areas of future co-operation,” Talakar added.

 The completion of the project is scheduled for late 2013.

Siemens is a global powerhouse in electronics and electrical engineering operating in the energy, infrastructure, industry and healthcare sectors.