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RIYADH: As global momentum builds toward cleaner and smarter energy systems, cyberattacks on power grids and transmission lines are emerging as a growing challenge to resilience.

Speaking to Arab News on the sidelines of the Global Cybersecurity Forum in Riyadh, Heidi Crebo-Rediker, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, said that investment in energy infrastructure was critical to protect against cyberattacks, which were becoming a major threat to energy systems worldwide.

“I think that the under-investment in the energy grid and energy related infrastructure is obviously a critical priority,” she said. “Finding the money to do that, and the will to do that, is is a challenge, and it falls on both public and private hands. So it’s really whose responsibility is it to pay for it, who prioritizes, but at the end of the day, if we don’t have a resilient energy infrastructure, then we have potentially massive, catastrophic shocks to businesses and to the economy at large.”

A recent Boston Consulting Group report said that quantum computing could unlock more than $50 billion in value across industries, with energy representing the largest opportunity. In oil and gas alone, the potential savings range from $6 billion to $30 billion.

“We already know that attacks from traditional types of threats can be catastrophic for the energy infrastructure, but cyber is a dominant risk,” Crebo-Rediker said.

She emphasized that resilience depended on effective cooperation, both domestically and internationally. “It’s not just collaboration between public and private,” she said. “Energy is global, and having cooperation between different countries on cybersecurity is imperative.”

Crebo-Rediker said that governance models also mattered, noting that “you have to have a much better working relationship between the public sector and the private sector.”

She added that it was difficult to know if enough was being invested until an effective cyberattack occured. “You never know if you’ve spent enough and invested enough, and if you’re resilient enough, until you are able to counter an attack that would otherwise shut you down,” she said.

“The idea is really to minimize the impact of cyberattacks, because as part of critical infrastructure you can’t have a functioning economy without your energy systems working.”

Crebo-Rediker added that the stakes were particularly high in regions where extreme climates or advanced industries demanded constant power. “For parts of the world that are either very hot, very cold, or dependent on high-tech industries, chip manufacturing companies, fabs (high-technology fabrication plants), all require constant energy to keep their systems operational, otherwise you have cascading negative effects on industry as a result,” she said.

Margarete Schramboeck, board member of Aramco Digital, said that energy security must be treated as the backbone of every economy.

“The energy sectors are the lifelines of each economy. We have seen this. If these lifelines are cut or not functioning anymore, the whole economy can go down,” she said. “A good energy sector is therefore key for each economy, and therefore it becomes a target for cybersecurity attacks, and it needs to be protected.”

Schramboeck highlighted the challenge of modernizing outdated systems. “In a lot of countries around the world, energy sectors are sometimes an infrastructure that is old,” she said. “So how can you combine innovations from the digital sector with these old investments which are actually not connected, which is difficult to handle.

“To find solutions, there is the key role for the next generations, and these generations, especially a lot of startups, but also existing big tech companies, invest a lot of their brains into solving this topic.”

She highlighted the importance of ongoing investment. “For the energy industry, there is continuous spending needed and, in my view, it will grow over the years,” she said. “When we see the next generations of threats coming ahead, there will be new investments needed. And I want to mention especially one big investment, which is absolutely necessary. It is into human capital. It’s into the next generation, the young people, training them, educating them.”

Schramboeck said that the Kingdom was also driving innovation in energy. “For the energy infrastructure, ������Ƶ is really doing a lot ... There is a lot of investment in startups and an ecosystem of next-generation energy solutions. And this has started a few years ago and is continuing, and I am convinced it will have a positive impact soon.

“It’s always about these two factors. It’s in investment in hardware, software and innovative solutions on the one hand side, but even more in people. Only when both are considered and taken care of, then we’re looking into a safe and secure future.”

The Global Cybersecurity Forum concluded on Thursday after two days of discussions with policymakers and industry leaders, under the theme “Scaling Cohesive Advancement in Cyberspace.”

RIYADH: Foreign investors may soon be able to buy Saudi stocks without restrictions, under a draft plan aimed at boosting liquidity and expanding the Kingdom’s $3 trillion equity market. 

The proposal, now out for a 30-day consultation, would allow all categories of non-resident investors to purchase shares directly on the Tadawul Main Market.

It would dismantle the Qualified Foreign Investor framework and scrap swap agreements, long seen as barriers to international participation, according to an official release.

Gulf markets such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar, as well as Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman, already allow foreign investors to buy shares directly, boosting liquidity, attracting global capital, and modernizing their exchanges. 

Foreign ownership in Saudi equities has already climbed sharply, exceeding SR528 billion ($141 billion) by the second quarter of 2025, Capital Market Authority data shows. If approved, the changes would mark the most significant market opening since direct foreign access was first introduced in 2015. 

“The draft aims to broaden and diversify the base of investors eligible to participate in the Main Market, while also attracting additional investments and increasing market liquidity,” the CMA said. 

The consultation runs until Oct. 31, with final rules to follow after feedback is reviewed. 

Once approved, foreign investors would be able to purchase shares in listed companies on the main market directly, without going through these extra layers. Non-resident investors would be able to open accounts and invest directly in listed securities. 

������Ƶ’s move fits into a broader program of capital-market modernization aimed at boosting liquidity and global participation. 

In July, the CMA eased rules for foreign investors to open accounts, while amendments to investment fund regulations aligned the market more closely with global standards. 

The latest draft follows a late-September policy signal that fueled a rally in Saudi equities and comes as officials weigh lifting the long-standing 49 percent cap on foreign ownership. 

The CMA pointed to strong growth in overseas participation as a foundation for the change. 

The regulator framed the draft as part of a phased approach to position Riyadh as an international marketplace capable of attracting larger, more diverse flows of foreign capital. 

The initiative, it said, is intended to strengthen confidence among market participants and support the broader local economy. 

Stakeholders can submit comments through the Unified Electronic Platform for Consulting the Public and Government Entities or via a prescribed email form. The CMA said it will review all relevant submissions before finalizing the amendments.