The Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) is going to replace its chief executive officer (CEO) with a senior director from state oil firm Saudi Aramco.

SEC’s CEO, Ali bin Saleh al-Barrack, who has been in the position since 2006, will leave his post on 1 January, according to SEC. He will be replaced by Ziad bin Mohammed al-Shiha, who is currently executive director for power systems at Saudi Aramco.

Al-Shiha has been heavily involved in Aramco’s efforts to improve efficiency of power generation through developing cogeneration plants.

Riyadh faces a stiff challenge to meet the rising power demand from an expanding economy and population in the coming years. According to a recent forecast issued by Ecra, peak demand will climb to 75,000 megawatts (MW) in 2020 and to 123,000MW by 2032 based on an average growth rate of 4.5-5 per cent a year.