The guesthouse in Al Ruwais.
News in brief
01 July 2015
ASGC projects well on track
Al Shafar General Contracting Company (ASGC) says its residential projects for Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) and Abu Dhabi Gas Development Company (Al Hosn Gas) are on track for completion next year.
These projects, awarded in 2014, include a Dh156-million ($42 million) deal with Adnoc to build a 206-room guesthouse and supporting facilities in Al Ruwais and a Dh164-million ($435 million) contract with Al Hosn Gas to construct a compound and residential accommodation complex in Qusahwira.
These projects reflect the success of ASGC’s efforts to diversify its construction skill set within the residential space and apply it to high-growth industry sectors such as oil and gas, says a company official.
“I am pleased to confirm that our projects with Adnoc and Al Hosn Gas are well under way and scheduled to be completed next year. These projects will provide excellent reference sites for our business as we continue our growth momentum,” says Bishoy Azmy, CEO of ASGC.
He adds: “In line with our diversification strategy, we are capitalising on sector opportunities across the region and are continuing to broaden our business as we move our construction expertise into residential and hospitality components of the oil and gas sector.”
Founded in 1989 in Dubai, ASGC provides turnkey general contracting solutions across a range of market sectors, including residential, commercial, hospitality, healthcare, industrial, leisure, infrastructure, and oil and gas.
ACES completes Bluewaters work
Aces Dubai, a specialist in site testing, environmental studies and quality control of projects, has recently completed the geotechnical investigation for the prestigious Bluewaters Island project in Dubai, UAE. The project is to be built on a reclaimed artificial island off the Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR) by Meraas Holding.
The investigation was carried out in phases where a total of 110 boreholes were drilled to depths ranging from 15 to 65 m below ground level, involving an approximate 3,785 linear m drilled. “Wireline core barrels were employed to obtain high quality core samples,” says a company spokesman. “In addition, cone penetration tests (CPT) were also carried out. Extensive field tests were conducted including high pressure dilatometer tests, falling head and packer permeability tests, geophysics downhole seismic tests, and installation of standpipe piezometers.”
Bluewaters Island will feature demarcated retail, residential, hospitality and entertainment zones. Serving as the centrepiece of the island project, a 210-m Ferris wheel (Dubai Eye) will offer breath-taking views of Dubai’s coastline and iconic landmarks such as Burj Al Arab, Palm Jumeirah and Burj Khalifa.
ACES, set up in Amman, Jordan, in 1983 has 15 offices across the Middle East.
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Port Ghalib desalination plant ... Metito project. |
Metito building treatment plants in Egypt
Metito, a leader and provider of choice for total intelligent water management solutions in emerging markets, says it is undertaking four key projects to build desalination and sewage treatment plants that will support the revival of Egypt’s local tourism economy.
The four projects, worth more than E£65 million ($8.52 million), are located in the major luxury resorts of City Stars by Golden Coast, Hacienda Bay by Palm Hills, Porto Sharm by Amer Group and Marassi by Emaar Egypt. The projects, which include seawater desalination installations and sewage treatment plants, will be concluded over the course of this year and are aimed to bolster the critical infrastructure at these resorts through ensuring a sustainable supply of clean and safe water and clean treated effluent for irrigation usage.
Commenting on the new deals, Karim Madwar, Metito Africa managing director, says: “The new projects we are working on will play a key role in strengthening the appeal and value proposition of these resorts as we make safe, sustainable and clean water supply available from the outset.”
The projects at Hacienda Bay and Porto Sharm include comprehensive sewage treatment plants with a capacity of 1,500 cu m per day each, in addition to providing training for site personnel. The seawater desalination installation at Marassi will use reverse osmosis to produce 7,500 cu m per day of potable water as well as operation and maintenance of the plant for one year. Previously, Metito installed a 5,000-cu-m-per-day reverse osmosis plant and a 3,000-cu-m-per-day sewage treatment plant at the same resort.
City Stars project, on the other hand, involves a build-operate-transfer (BOT) scheme for a 4,500-cu-m-per-day desalination plant and a 3,000-cu-m-per-day sewage treatment plant.
Madwar says Metito’s services, in all sites, follow the stated environmental regulations and aim at lowering energy consumption per cu m of produced water.
