Sharjah waste management company Bee’ah is looking to expand in Saudi Arabia, the Arab world’s biggest economy, after securing three new contracts in Madinah. The company said on Sunday that it will provide solid waste collection and transportation services as well as the disinfection of bins across 70 per cent of the city. It, however, did not disclose the total value of the three contracts. “Bee’ah’s efforts complement Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 targets in sustainable development, which include raising recycling rates to 85 per cent,” Bee’ah said. “Securing the Madinah contracts is, therefore, a notable achievement for the company, since the expected population of the [northern, eastern and western] districts, where Bee’ah will commence its operations, is expected to grow from 1.2 million to 1.46 million by 2024.” The waste management company is expected to begin operations this month. It will have a workforce of about 3,000 workers and use 350 pieces of heavy equipment to fulfil the contracts. Founded in 2007, Bee’ah – which means “environment” in English – collects more than three million tonnes of waste a year. The company has the highest landfill diversion rate in the Middle East, at 76 per cent. This means less than a quarter of waste is going to landfill, with the rest recycled and reused. Bee'ah intends to achieve double-digit growth in revenue and profit in the next three years, group chief executive Khaled Al Huraimel told <em>The National</em> last year. The company was awarded a contract earlier this year to manage waste at Egypt’s new administrative capital, which is being built close to the current capital, Cairo. In the UAE, Bee’ah serves Sharjah, parts of Abu Dhabi and other important sites such as Burj Khalifa and the Dubai World Trade Centre. The company announced plans last month to build a solar farm over 47 hectares of capped landfill, the first such scheme in the UAE that will add more renewable energy to the grid. The solar farm project, which is expected to generate more than 42 megawatts of electricity on an annual basis, will be built over Al Saja’a landfill in Sharjah.