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Interest in renewable energy -- particularly solar power -- and green building has increased sharply in Saudi Arabia in the past few years. This has been driven mainly by two factors: the rapid increase in power demand as the Kingdom expands its industrial and manufacturing base; and the recognition that this demand must be met as much as possible through alternative sources, preserving the Kingdom's abundant oil for export and value-added processing, rather than for power generation. Thus the Saudis are looking to both reduce energy consumption through green building and energy efficiency improvements, and to replace domestic hydrocarbon-based power generation with renewable energy, above all through development of solar power. In March, 2011, the Saudi government announced plans to invest $100 billion over the next decade to meet rising energy demand. Much of this amount will be devoted to solar power. As Saudi Arabia expands its energy supply and integrates renewable energy, further investment will be required in grid modernization and smart grid technologies that enable utility management of variable energy sources. The Mission will be led by a senior Department of Commerce official. Over a five-day period, April 14-18, 2012, Mission members will travel to all three of Saudi Arabia's major urban - industrial areas: Jeddah, the Kingdom's historic commercial and trading center, and home to many of its major merchant family-owned business groups; Riyadh, the seat of government and a major market in its own right; and Dhahran, the home of Saudi Aramco and the heart of Saudi Arabia's petroleum and developing petrochemical industry. Companies will have the opportunity to meet major buyers and end-users, prospective partners and government officials.