Saudi contractors call for gov't cash injection

GOVERNMENT HELP: Saudi's leading contractors have urged ministers for financial help. (Getty Images)

Saudi contractors are expected to call for urgent financial assistance from the government on Sunday, as the global economic crisis threatens to slow development projects.

A meeting of 16 leading contractors in the capital will demand the kingdom’s Ministry of Finance to speed up the implementation of a recent decision to set up a financing fund for contractors, according to Fahd Al Hammadi, chairman of the contractors committee at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI).

The committee is looking for a similar cash injection to that recently given to national banks, to help ensure the scheduled completion of various developmental projects worth SR750 billion, Al Hammadi said.

“RCCI’s committee of contractors will study all possible ways to solve the problem. It is an encouraging factor, however, that the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency has been pumping liquidity and reducing repo rates on loans to local banks,” he told Saudi daily Arab news.

Despite the cash assistance given to banks contractors were still still finding it "extremely" difficult to get sufficient financing - a situation that might lead to unforeseen delays in completing various projects, he added.

A media plan to highlight the obstacles and challenges faced by the sector, as well as highlighting new opportunities in the local and regional contracting sectors, would also be launched at the meeting, Al Hammadi said.

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