Members of the Housing and Development Subcommittee of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce, chaired by Majid Al-Hogail, discussed during their recent meeting with Ahmed Hussein Mandoura, Director of the Key Accounts Unit at the National Water Company, partnership programs and mechanisms aimed at developing water and sanitation services to keep pace with theurban boom in the Kingdom. They also discussed ways to coordinate efforts among all parties to overcome the obstacles facing the real estate development sector, given that the National Water Company is considered an important strategic partner for infrastructure development. Al-Hogail explained that the meeting was held to review the company’s programs in light of the significant development the real estate sector is witnessing, noting that these efforts will have a major impact on the sector’s growth and support the government’s housing programs. For his part, Mandoura emphasized that the water company attaches great importance to the real estate sector given its role in driving development and providing housing for citizens. During the meeting, he reviewed the company’s programs and mechanisms offered to real estate developers, explaining that the program is based on the idea of installing a main meter at the main distribution point of the developed area. The developer is billed for consumption under a binding agreement for a period of no less than 10 years, and the developer collects payments directly from residents or appoints an operator. He said that the second program calculates the water quantities required for the project based on completed studies, with the amount determined for a period of no less than seven years, to be paid in advance by the developer according to the specified timeline for the development phases. He added that the company has a number of technical options available, including identifying water sources outside the development plan, drilling wells, and constructing a water treatment plant within the plan on land designated for that purpose, with the area determined according to water needs and the cost borne in accordance with the agreements. In addition, the company provides various services to land development project developers in accordance with the specified agreements, including the design and construction of water and wastewater treatment plants, reservoirs, and networks for the project using the latest technical methods and applying global best practices in terms of quality, costs, and maintenance and the operation of all project components within the development in accordance with global best technical practices and performance standards that ensure exceptional services for all customers, as well as providing continuous water pumping services around the clock using main meters to measure water flow for the development and implementing billing and collection systems for all types of units in accordance with relevant regulations, and reusing treated wastewater in accordance with the latest technical and commercial methods, and implementing the latest remote monitoring, measurement, and control systems for all project components, including stations, main reservoirs, pumps, meters, and others, to achieve excellence and sophistication in service delivery to all customers as outlined in the plan.