German multi-national giant Siemens, which has had many years of involvement in Bahrain's power sector and is expecting a still greater role in local ventures across a wide spectrum of industries, has expanded its presence in the kingdom by opening a country office.
The new office is on the fourth floor of Unitag House in Manama and headed by Adrian Wood, who has been with Siemens for 18 years.
"Currently, Siemens' various divisions, including its power generation and medical branches, are located in different places. The new country office is the first step in a long-term plan for the German group to set up an exclusive Siemens centre in Bahrain," said Wood.
Abu Dhabi-based Siemens chief executive officer Joachim Kundt said the establishment of the new country office would initiate a new era for the company's businesses in Bahrain.
"We established an office in Abu Dhabi three years ago with 11 people. It has now grown into a full fledged company employing 360 people," he said.
"We hope to have a good share in the growing business opportunities in Bahrain, which will also enable us to create more jobs for young Bahrainis.
"We are keen to share our expertise and experience in the area of power generation with Alba, which has embarked on a major plan for the expansion of its power plant."
Siemens Power Generation (PG) was awarded a $25-million contract for the refurbishment of the Riffa Power Station by the Electricity and Water Ministry recently.
The agreement is to refurbish the plant, which had become operational in 1978, and extend its life for another 15 years. It was Siemens that installed the first five units of gas turbines at the power station in 1974.
"The $1-billion plant has a capacity for 1,500 megawatts of power and 100 million gallons of water," said Kundt.
The first independent power and water plant in Taweelah, Abu Dhabi, was built by Siemens and handed over earlier this year. The $500-million plant has a capacity of 750mw electricity and 50 million gallons of water.
"We are also in the process of building a power station in Jebel Ali, Dubai. Siemens has already bought the US firm Westinghouse, which is actively involved in the installation of power generation units in Saudi Arabia and Qatar," said Kundt.
Unitag general manager Hisham Al Baradie said Siemens Medical Solutions was also complementing the needs of Bahrain's health services by supplying state-of-the art equipment.
These include the recent supply of cardiac CT scan and shockwave therapy equipment to the BDF Hospital.
Wood said Siemens, which has bought former Swiss company Electrowatt, would be delighted to offer its advanced technology in the areas of building automation, fire safety, security screening, airfield lighting, industrial applications, power transmission and distribution and cargo transport.
"Siemens exported one million mobile phones to the Middle East last year, and our market share in Bahrain has been increasing steadily," he revealed.
Wafa recalled the success of Siemens' campaign to train Bahrainis in advanced communication and on-line maintenance of gas turbines in the Middle East.
Siemens AG, which has chosen Bahrain as the main hub for its dataline communications in the Middle East, has recruited several Bahrainis for the training programme.
"Bahrain is now the focal point for training related to on-line maintenance of power generation equipment in different countries in the region," said Wafa. "Bahraini engineers will play a key role in the servicing of Siemens turbines in the whole region."
