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News in brief

01 April 2016

Indian firm to build Oman plant

UEM India, a water services company of Toshiba Group, has won a major DBO (design, build and operate) contract worth $32 million for a wastewater treatment and recycling plant in Oman.

The contract was awarded by Majis Industrial Services, an Omani-government owned corporation and provider of water utility services at Sohar Industrial Port Area. The scope of work includes the design and construction of a central effluent treatment and Phase Two of a recycling project in the port area. Part of the agreement is the operation and maintenance of the facility by UEM for the first 10 years.

Koichi Matsui, chairperson and managing director of UEM, comments: “The contract reflects the group’s accomplishments in Oman and its capabilities in integrating engineering.”

The company received the order for this facility, now under construction, for which it is deploying high-level purifying treatment technology and facilities utilising an ultrafiltration membrane, reverse osmosis membrane and ion-exchange resin filtration system, all used in water treatment facilities in Japan.

He adds Toshiba’s acquisition of UEM last September has been good for both companies, as it has enhanced co-operation and sharing of technologies and know-how. “We will contribute to Oman’s industrial growth through the Sohar project and positively seek participation in future projects.”

Orascom wins $200m contracts in region

Orascom Construction said it has won contracts worth $200 million for three industrial and infrastructure projects – including a greenfield cement plant – in Algeria and Egypt.

The first contract in Algeria is part of a greenfield cement plant with a daily capacity of 6,000 tonnes for a private sector client and the second comprises infrastructure work for an industrial complex. The combined value of both contracts is $180 million, says the company.

In Egypt, National Steel Fabrication (NSF), one of Orascom Construction’s building materials subsidiaries, received a $20-million order to manufacture and supply all structural steel for the West Nile Delta gas development project. A key manufacturer and supplier of fabricated steel products in Egypt and North Africa, NSF boasts a total annual capacity of 120,000 tonnes. It operates four facilities in Egypt and Algeria, two of which are the largest in the Middle East and North Africa.

Akoya Oxygen deal for Punj Lloyd

Punj Lloyd, a diversified engineering, procurement and construction conglomerate in India, has been awarded a major infrastructure contract worth $45 million in the UAE.

As per the deal awarded by Front Line Investment Management Company, a subsidiary of Damac Properties Development, the group will be responsible for the construction of 168 villas at Trixis Cluster of the Akoya Oxygen master development offering a luxury lifestyle at the heart of nature in Al Yufrah 2, Dubai.

Located along the Umm Suqeim Expressway and spread over a 55 million sq ft of land, Akoya Oxygen will feature a selection of opulent homes set within expansive landscaping with 18-hole championship golf course, five-star hotel as well as 2,000 hotel apartments, luxury retail strip (Vista Lux) encompassing a 1-million-sq-ft entertainment and retail district and more than 1.5 km of walkway.

On the win, Shantanu Karkun, the president and chief executive for buildings and infrastructure, Punj Lloyd, says: “It is our privilege to win this contract for a premium luxury development. The Akoya Oxygen community will have the region’s first rainforest and will be fully completed before Expo 2020.”

“Punj Lloyd Group has delivered several luxury spaces including the Jumeirah Islands Villa in Dubai, the Four Seasons Hotel in Singapore and the many integrated iconic resorts in Singapore,” he adds.

Korea to assist in UAE nuclear plan

Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) will be sending dozens of its workers to the UAE to assist with the commissioning of the Arab country’s first unit at the Barakah nuclear power plant.

Under a contract signed with the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC), KHNP will send more than 50 people, including plant operators and some support personnel, to work at the UAE’s first reactor.

“Construction of the first of four Korean-designed APR-1400 pressurised water reactors at Barakah, 50 km from the town of Ruwais, began in 2012. Barakah One is now almost 90 per cent complete, with a completion target of May 2017,” says a spokesman for ENEC.

Construction on Unit Two began in 2013, and is about 65 per cent complete, while work began on Units Three and Four in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Overall, construction of the four units at the site is almost 60 per cent complete. All four units are scheduled to be complete by 2020.

The UAE and South Korea signed a bilateral civil nuclear energy cooperation agreement in June 2009. Under the terms of the agreement, South Korea will help the UAE to develop its civil nuclear programme over the next two decades through the transfer of technology, equipment and expertise.