O&M Initiative صورة الالتفاف محتوى الصفحة The objective of the O&M initiative is to fill the current void in the market for a technically competent entity in the field of operating & managing the water and wastewater infrastructure, incorporating global best practices with financially sustainable operations. This initiative will also focus on the “insourcing” & “effective utilization” of the NWC staff, which will result in greater employment opportunities for the “Saudiazation” process.     This is envisaged to take place in two distinct phases:     Phase 1 Business Unit creation and incubation – whereby the target operations are identified and ringfenced  to form a business unit (BU) within NWC itself operating as a profit centre. This BU will then be allowed to  mature through the incubation period for duration of at between 9 -18 months followed by the next phase.   Phase 2 Spinoff to SPV – whereby the BU is spunoff by creating SPVs (Special Purpose Vehicles) with  international and local partners including NWC itself as one of the participants. The BUs and subsequent SPVs will provide excellent customer service to NWC customers, while ensuring that  the water & wastewater assets are kept at optimum performance levels at all times..   The key areas of this initative will ensure that :    ·        ·  The O&M BUs/SPVs will integrate NWCs currently outsourced O&M activities,  which may              subsequently extend to potentially include entire cities   ·        ·  Growth of BUs/SPVs will be via securing third party business, from within the KSA, GCC and              MENA regions   ·         · The BUs/SPVs will be socially responsible through Saudization   The aim is to establish the SPVs as a brand for O&M services in the water and wastewater industry.     ·         Circa 2B SAR+ worth of W&WW O&M contracts in 16 KSA cities ·         Potential for ~1.5B+ SAR worth of additional W&WW O&M contracts in other cities in KSA ·         Skilled local human resources ·         Knowledge of local KSA market and access to government entities ·         Faster/ easier manpower ramp up    What do the SPV partners bring to the table?     ·         Existing/potential contracts at the inception of the JV from the partners to increase the critical mass ·         Access to regional growth opportunities within GCC and MENA for the JV ·         Skills and know-how for adopting operational excellence of O&M in water/wastewater in an efficient manner ·         Local partners can bring knowledge of and access to local manpower as required ·         Financing for potential projects    What is happening now?           In 2011, the BDD has commenced  the formation of  a series of pilot Business Units in order to test the principles and commence its journey. This will include two WWTPs located on the Jeddah/Mecca border.   NWC will be releasing an RFP for the Technical, Financial and legal aspects related to this initiative in the near  future.