On Wednesday, 28 May, the European Chamber of Commerce in Saudi Arabia (ECCKSA) was pleased to take part in the 6th EU-IEF Energy & Climate Day Forum, held at the International Energy Forum (IEF) headquarters in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter. The event was jointly hosted by the EU-GCC Cooperation on Green Transition project and the IEF.

ECCKSA CEO Kristijonas Gedvilas contributed to a high-level panel discussion on “Unlocking Private Sector Opportunities for Green Energy Investment & Innovation”, moderated by Mr Spyros Kouvelis, Team Leader of the EU-GCC Green Transition project. The panel brought together prominent voices from the sector, including:

•⁠ ⁠Alexander van Veldhoven, Group Chief Strategy Officer, Bapco Energies
•⁠ ⁠Hesham Tashkandi, President, ACWA Power Saudi Arabia
•⁠ ⁠Mohammed AlHajjaj, CEO of ENGIE KSA and Member of ECCKSA

The discussion offered valuable insights into how the private sector can support and scale the green transition, and underscored ECCKSA’s continued commitment to encouraging collaboration between European and Saudi stakeholders on this important agenda.

In keeping with our longstanding engagement in the energy sector, ECCKSA invited its members to take part in the forum, building on a series of recent milestones:

•⁠ ⁠The Energy Roundtable in October 2024 
•⁠ ⁠The visit of Ms Ditte Juul-Jørgensen, Director-General for Energy at the European Commission, and her meeting with leading European companies in April 2025
•⁠ ⁠The launch of ECCKSA’s dedicated Energy Committee in May 2025

As we look ahead, ECCKSA warmly encourages private sector stakeholders to take part in the next stages of the EU-KSA energy dialogue, focusing on:

•⁠ ⁠Energy efficiency
•⁠ ⁠Renewable energy
•⁠ ⁠Hydrogen
•⁠ ⁠Carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS)
•⁠ ⁠Low-emission technologies and clean tech value chains
•⁠ ⁠Critical raw materials and sustainability

For expressions of interest, please contact: secretariat@eccksa.eu

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Mr Spyros Kouvelis, Ms Rania Nseir and the EU-GCC Green Transition team for their efforts in ensuring the private sector’s inclusion; to the EU Delegation in Saudi Arabia, H.E. Ambassador Christophe Farnaud and Dr Thomas Juergensen for their steadfast support; to the IEF for its kind hospitality; and to all participants whose contributions made this forum a meaningful success.

Let us continue to foster dialogue and partnerships that pave the way towards a more sustainable and inclusive energy future.