Saudi must rein in soaring power consumption

Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia needs to rein in fast-growing power demand that threatens to eat into future exports, Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said in remarks published late on Wednesday.

An economic boom fuelled by record oil revenues this decade and subsidised domestic prices have led to a rapid rise in electricity consumption in the kingdom.

Gas supplies were insufficient to meet all demand for power, so Saudi Arabia burns oil products and some crude to meet demand.

“If this trend in power consumption in the kingdom continues it will impact the size of exports and will affect the kingdom’s income, which necessitates the implementation of a national programme to rationalise power consumption,” Naimi said in remarks published by the official Saudi Press Agency.

Maktoob