EXCLUSIVE: Abu Dhabi plans independent water project

02 November, 2017 | By Andrew Roscoe

Abu Dhabi Electricity & Water Authority (Adwea) is planning to oversee the development of the emirate’s first independent water project (IWP).

Adwea recently received bids from firms to provide technical advisory services for the proposed reverse osmosis (RO) desalination plant.

The advisory contract will involve determining the final capacity of the plant and location. The capacity is expected to be about 50 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD), which could be extended up to 80 MIGD in a couple of phases.

Possible sites are believed to be:

Mirfa
Umm al-Nar
Taweelah
Emirates Aluminium site
Fujairah

While Abu Dhabi has implemented several independent water and power projects (IWPPs) over the past 20 years, the planned IWP would be the emirate’s first privately financed standalone desalination plant.

Traditionally in the GCC’s utilities sector, desalination capacity, mainly thermal, was coupled with power in cogeneration plants. However, this is now starting to change, with the emergence of seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) as a less energy-intensive technology.

The decoupling of desalination from power plants will assist with providing a more efficient supply of water when required, particularly with the significant power capacity due to come online from the under-construction 5.6GW Baraka nuclear power plant in the coming three years.

Saudi Arabia is also planning to develop several major IWPs in the coming years, having previously developed desalination supply in cogeneration facilities.

Abu Dhabi receives bids for next Etihad rail package

Etihad Rail last week awarded AED4.4bn-worth of contracts for packages B and C to a Chinese/local team Etihad Rail has received bids for Package D of the second stage of the ...

GCC construction and transport awards drop again in 2017

If six-month rolling averages are considered then the market has shown signs of bottoming out this year The total value of construction and transport contract awards in the GCC fell for ...

Transforming Construction: Lessons from Oil & Gas

IMPARTING KNOWLEDGE: The region’s construction industry is in a state of revival and can learn valuable insights from its oil and gas counterpart With nearly $1.6tn-worth of major building and infrastructure ...

Investors favour technology-led consortiums

Dubai Metro’s Route 2020 financing highlights crucial role of technology firms in infrastructure projects The growing prominence of infratech, a portmanteau for infrastructure and technology, further highlights the disruptive impact of ...

ENERGY CLUB 3: Renewables on the rise in Mena

The third Mashreq Energy Club focused on the rise of renewables in the region The falling costs of clean energy technologies is driving the shift towards renewable energy across the Middle ...

Dubai awards $3.8bn concentrated solar project

Emirate’s 700MW CSP facility will be developed under world-record tariff Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (Dewa) has awarded a contract for a 700MW concentrated solar power (CSP) solar project in Dubai, ...

Power and water sector undergoes major reforms

The power and water sector remains one of the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region’s most active project segments, and this is set to continue into 2018, with a number ...

Dubai seeks consultants for first wind power project

Firms sought to conduct feasibility study for a wind project at Hatta State utility Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (Dewa) has invited consultants to submit proposals for the contract to provide ...

Dubai sets July deadline for Al-Maktoum airport bids

The substructure package is the largest contract to be tendered for the expansion of Al-Maktoum International airport Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects (DAEP) has given selected bidders an end of July deadline ...

Ten Minutes into the Future of Infrastructure

UAE infrastructure minister highlights importance of intermodal transport Exclusive interview: Research partnerships and Big Data are key to the future of transport investment, says the UAE’s Minister of Infrastructure Development Abdullah ...

Abu Dhabi receives bids for next Etihad rail

GCC construction and transport awards drop again in