The first phase of the initiative targeted the plantation of 1000 saplings along the Kharar Bay in Rabigh Governorate, covering an area of over 70 thousand square meters. Company employees and their family members took part in planting the saplings.

Petro Rabigh's President & CEO, Engineer Othman bin Ali Al-Ghamdi, emphasized that the mangrove trees plantation initiative is part of the Company's commitment to reducing carbon dioxide emissions in order to mitigate pollution and support the goals of the Kingdom Vision 2030. The initiative aims to increase plant diversity, improve climate conditions, lower temperatures, and educate Company personnel and their families and raise environmental awareness. the President & CEO pointed out that Petro Rabigh is collaborating with the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture and utilizing several scientific studies and researches to carry out this strategic direction.

Al-Ghamdi stated that the Company, as part of its keen interest in nature conservation, signed last March a 20-year term partnership and strategic cooperation agreement with Gulfcryo covering the extraction of 100,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually from the Mono Ethylene Glycol (MEG)Plant, located in the Petro Rabigh Industrial Complex, with the aim of contributing to a sustainable economy and the replacement of fossil fuel burning plants. This agreement is aligned with the Kingdom’s Carbon Circular Economy concept, the ambitious Vision 2030 programs, the Green Saudi Initiative, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

According to Engineer Mohammed Farsi, the Company’s Vice President of Engineering and Support, planting mangrove trees has both a biological and a cultural significance, and it contributes to achieving several objectives, including educating the society about plant preservation and providing a healthy and natural environment. Farsi confirmed that the Kingdom is on its way to achieve a qualitative leap in environmental protection and landscaping, unmatched by any other country in the Middle East. As a result of such pioneering and ambitious initiatives, desertification will be reduced, biological diversity will be enhanced, and a cleaner, more sustainable future will improve human wellbeing and the quality of life.

Furthermore, Farsi stated that the Petro Rabigh initiative is part of the Company’s social responsibility to expand the plant landscape in the coastal environment. He pointed out that Mangrove trees are among the most important natural resources in the Kingdom, which we are seeking to intensify and multiply through plantation projects to achieve Saudi Green Initiative goals. The Mangrove trees have many advantages, such as protecting the coasts from rising water levels, reducing the effects of climate change by storing substantial amounts of carbon in soil, providing wildlife with a habitat, absorbing toxins, storing carbon over the long term, and delaying the effects of climate change. “We have launched this initiative to contribute to a greener future that helps in improving the quality of life and in protecting the generations to come”, he added.