Accenture (NYSE: ACN) is helping Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) to prepare for a comprehensive restructuring that is designed to lead to an eventual liberalization of the electricity market in Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi Electricity and Co-generation Regulatory Authority (ECRA) recently launched the Electricity Industry Restructuring Plan (EIRP), an initiative which provides the guidelines to move towards a more competitive wholesale electricity market in the Kingdom.
SEC recently created the National Grid Company S.A., a wholly owned power transmission subsidiary, as the first step in a multi-year restructuring of the company. Within this phase of the Restructuring Program, SEC will also create and spin off four generation companies and one distribution company.
As part of this effort, Accenture is providing management consulting services, helping implement and operate a strategic project management capability for SEC to identify and manage various projects, and redesign the intercompany processes needed for SEC and its new operating companies to operate together.
Under the management consulting contract, Accenture is also responsible for designing and running a change and communication management program, designing the new organization Unit for Regulatory Affairs and Performance Monitoring, and for helping SEC to define Service Level Agreements that will regulate the interactions between SEC and its subsidiaries.
“Our aim is to prepare our company and the industry to operate with maximum efficiency and effectiveness in an unbundled and eventually liberalized market,” said Saud Al-Shammari, Restructuring Project Director and HR Senior Vice President of Saudi Electricity Company. “The challenge we have ahead of us is one of technology, culture and processes. Accenture’s strengths in the utilities sector will be of value as we transform our operations to meet our goals”.
Giampietro Sanna, director of Accenture’s Utilities industry group in the Middle East, said, “The restructuring of Saudi Electricity Company is the most important and far-reaching strategic initiative the company is currently undertaking. Accenture will draw on its global management consulting capabilities and industry experience to support and provide SEC with the necessary tools to help it transition to a competitive market.”
About Saudi Electricity Company
Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) is one of the largest utility companies in the GCC, both by market capitalization ($ 12,572M), and in terms of its installed power generation capacity (40.697GW). As the major electricity provider serving almost 6 million customers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, SEC is responsible for generation, transmission and distribution of electricity throughout the Kingdom.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with more than 246,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. The company generated net revenues of US$25.5 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2011. Its home page is www.accenture.com
Allen Valahu, + 33 1 53 23 57 54
allen.valahu@accenture.com
or
Christine Yee Fields, + 330 234 6406
christine.fields@accenture.com