نائب رئيس الهيئة العامة للنقل لقطاع التنظيم بالسعودية لـ CNBC عربية: نستهدف زيادة المستخدمين للنقل العام من 1% إلى أكثر من 15% بحلول 2030
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00:00 I'm joined by Mr. Fawazi Al-Sahli, who is the vice president of the General Board of Transport
00:05 for the Saudi Regulatory Authority.
00:07 Welcome to us.
00:08 It is certainly a big, massive step.
00:09 What is the added value of this step, aside from what we have mentioned?
00:15 Welcome, everyone.
00:16 Indeed, as I mentioned, it is a step that has many added values.
00:23 The project is to open the door to competition in the transport market for passengers in the
00:30 carriages between the Kingdom cities, after it was submitted through a one-year commitment
00:37 and commitment for 45 years.
00:39 The project's main goals, in addition to providing transport services to the 200 cities and provinces
00:46 that I mentioned in the report a little while ago, is to target competition in the sector
00:53 and to raise the level of safety and quality.
00:57 It also aims to launch a marine network in addition to a permanent network to serve the
01:04 capital cities, to serve the heritage sites and activities, and also to serve the transportation
01:13 sector, to serve the points inside the cities.
01:17 The project differs from what was previously submitted, in addition to the 200 cities and
01:23 provinces, there are 301 stops inside and between the cities to serve the number of passengers.
01:31 The project's main goal is to raise the level of safety through the technologies that
01:38 are available in the transport market, and to provide a permanent network to ensure the
01:45 safety of the services.
01:47 Mr. Fawazi, it is also interesting in this work that it is the first foreign investment
01:53 that will be made in this sector.
01:56 How much will the door be open to local companies to contribute to this project in the near future?
02:05 Yes, local companies are a contributing part of the three alliances that have been formed.
02:12 The three alliances are foreign companies, and it is indeed the first foreign investment
02:19 in this market, and we are also proud of local companies.
02:24 Today, the transport sector in buses started with five cities as a transport hub, and now
02:31 this project is being transported between 200 cities.
02:36 We are aiming at the General Authority to transfer to the city.
02:41 Mr. Fawazi, how much money has been allocated for this project?
02:46 It is an investment from the private sector.
02:50 The money is to prepare 370 buses to reach the bus and also to prepare 15 stops.
02:58 I will return to the point of local investments, and I will say that today the market is open
03:04 to local and foreign investments, and we are aiming at the General Authority to operate
03:09 transport services in 37 cities and provinces within the Kingdom.
03:13 Mr. Fawazi, we are talking about the investment agenda for this project.
03:17 No doubt you have taken them to a comprehensive study on the beneficiaries of this.
03:22 You know that transportation in Saudi Arabia sometimes, and even the bus fare, is through
03:27 the private sector.
03:29 To what extent will this project be covered, perhaps from traffic accidents as a result
03:34 of using these small sectors in these streets?
03:37 And who are the beneficiaries of this service?
03:40 We are talking about 6 million people.
03:43 In general, in the national strategy for public transport, we aim to increase the number
03:49 of users for public transport from 1% per day, and today most people use the private
03:55 sector, up to 15%, more than 15% in 2030.
03:59 Today, to attract or encourage the users of the private sector to use public transport
04:06 services, whether inside or outside the city, we have put a policy for the prices, and a
04:11 higher price limit.
04:12 Yes, there is competition.
04:13 There is a lot of competition between the three parties, but the body has put a higher
04:19 price limit for public transport, and a clear policy for public transport, so that it
04:26 guarantees, God willing, first, the competitiveness of this service with the rest of the public
04:31 transport sectors, including the private sector, and guarantees its availability to all
04:35 groups of society.
04:36 Yes, Mr. Fawazi, as you said, there will be contributions from local companies as well.
04:43 Is it possible that there will be a preference for local companies in the near future, and
04:50 their contributions as well?
04:52 And what is the expected number of revenues to be achieved in the near future, to the
04:58 closest estimate?
04:59 As you know, any project that is proposed today has a local content ratio, which is
05:09 a priority for local companies, and the local content ratio that we put in the contracts
05:15 in coordination with the relevant parties, will guarantee, God willing, the existence
05:20 of these companies in a competitive and good way.
05:23 The goal of the foreign investment was to transfer expertise to the sector.
05:28 As I mentioned, the sector was offered from one contract, and therefore there is a need
05:34 to raise the level of the sector and the entry of foreign expertise, foreign investment
05:40 in this sector.
05:41 Today, when the project was proposed, when the project was designed, the Public Transport
05:46 Authority and its partners from other government parties estimated the returns from the investment
05:51 and explained it to the companies, but this remains an estimate for the authority, and
05:56 every investor before submitting it to the grant.
05:59 And the advantage today is that there is no chain in the service, more than 24 alliances
06:04 competed to submit this service, studied it well, and saw opportunities in it, and then
06:09 they presented it.
06:10 We wish you good luck, Fawazi Al-Sahli, and you, Deputy Chairman of the Public Transport
06:15 Authority of the Saudi Organization.
06:17 Thank you very much.
06:18 You were with us from Riyadh.
06:20 in Rio.
06:21 [BLANK_AUDIO]