المملكة: “Water”: A licensed operator and an approved price are a condition for selling the service in the complexes – urgent

The Saudi Water Authority issued a comprehensive regulatory framework specifying the rules for bulk purchasing For water and sanitation services, aiming to regulate the relationship between service providers and large beneficiaries to ensure water sustainability and enhance transparency in costs.

Raising the efficiency of delivery and distribution operations

The new rules aim to raise the efficiency of delivery and self-distribution operations within Regulatory classification of the Authority, to include all requests for receipt, use, distribution, collection, and self-treatment and their associated obligations. The rules define a large beneficiary as an entity whose consumption exceeds the prescribed limits, whether its purpose is for private operational use or self-distribution of water to internal beneficiaries within a specific geographical scope.

The Authority obligated service providers to study receipt requests for major projects and determine the necessary quantities within a period not exceeding thirty working days from the date of submitting the request. The “Bulk Purchase Agreement” is then concluded, which specifies the technical and financial obligations and implementation schedules based on the price approved by the Authority to cover the volume of available demand.

Rules and Regulations

In a step aimed at accelerating the pace of development, the rules allowed the large beneficiary to bear the actual costs of infrastructure in the event that budgets for the necessary projects are not approved or the implementation schedule is not compatible with his plan. This is done by signing a binding agreement to purchase infrastructure services, with the beneficiary being exempted in this case from the cost of the capital service, completely or partially, in compensation for the expenses incurred.

The new regulations imposed on beneficiaries who wish to “self-distribute” water within their complexes the necessity of contracting with a specialized and licensed operator to manage the internal system. It also required the establishment of an independent accounting system and accurate internal billing that relies on independent meters for each internal beneficiary to ensure fairness in calculating consumption.

The rules categorically prohibited the sale of water inside or outside the scope of the establishment without a license, or its use for purposes outside the scope of approved self-use. It stressed the need for the large beneficiary to adhere to retail water selling prices to internal beneficiaries in accordance with the values ​​approved by the Authority, which take into account the actual costs to ensure that the final consumer is not exploited.

The Authority granted itself and service providers broad powers of oversight, including the right to carry out inspection visits and examine the internal networks of major facilities to ensure their compliance with regulatory requirements. It threatened violators with deterrent penalties, including stopping service temporarily or permanently in cases of irregular connection, tampering with meters, or harming water quality and the safety of the public network.

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