Saudi Total announces new general manager

Saudi Total, a joint venture between Zahid Group and Total, has announced the appointment of Hisham Atalla as general manager, who comes to Saudi Arabia with more than 20 years of experience in the oil and gas industry. Atalla, a graduate of architecture engineering from Cairo University, joined Total Egypt in 1998, handling various roles in sales, strategy, operations and senior management. He also worked in the Total head office in Paris, gaining him insight into Total’s global growth objectives and ultimately led to his role in managing the start-up of a new affiliate of Total Jordan.

Atalla succeeds Nizar Raydan, who relocated to Geneva, Switzerland, to assume the role of global supply head – base oil department with Total. During his tenure in Saudi Arabia, Raydan oversaw the grand opening of Saudi Total’s blending plant in King Abdullah Economic City in October 2013, and the emergence of Total as a strong consumer brand with more than 15 authorized service centers.

The Zahid Group, which is headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and French Total’s partnership began in 2007 with the formation of Saudi Total, which specializes in the manufacturing and marketing of automotive, industrial and marine lubricants, as well as specialty products within the Kingdom. The partnership was further strengthened in 2014 when Zahid Group became a shareholder in Total’s Marketing and Services affiliate, Total Maroc.