Gulf Construction Online - Samsung wins $952m deal for Fujairah plant

UAE Focus

Fujairah F3 IPP project ... construction work to commence soon.

Samsung wins $952m deal for Fujairah plant

01 March 2020

Samsung C&T, a global engineering and construction company, has announced that it has been awarded a 1.15 trillion won ($952 million) contract by Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) to build a 2.4 GW combined-cycle power plant in Fujairah, the largest independent thermal power plant in the UAE.

Fujairah F3 independent power project (IPP) is being developed by a partnership of Abu Dhabi Power Corporation (ADPower) and Japanese developer Marubeni Corporation. Located some 300 km northeast of Abu Dhabi, in the Fujairah water and electricity complex, between the existing Fujairah F1 and Fujairah F2 plants, the Fujairah F3 IPP project will have a contracted power capacity of 2.4 GW, bringing ADPower’s current power generation capacity to 20.4 GW.

Under this deal, Samsung C&T will function as the exclusive engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor, thus signalling a bright year ahead for the company in 2020, said the Korean builder.

The construction phase of the project is expected to be completed in April 2023. Once ready, the new plant will power a total of 380,000 homes in the northern region of the UAE, it stated.

Samsung C&T is a major player in the utility sector with an extensive experience in building many power plants throughout the Middle East. It is currently working on building a nuclear power plant in the UAE, a metro system in the Saudi capital Riyadh, and a desalination plant in Qatar.

Meanwhile, ADPower and Marubeni Corporation have set up a consortium for developing the Fujairah F3 independent power producer (IPP) project.

CEO and managing director of ADPower Jasim Husain Thabet said: “Our ambition is to transform Abu Dhabi’s water and electricity sector into a reliable, efficient, sustainable and value-generating system that optimises our robust portfolio of assets and creates unique partnership opportunities.”

“The F3 IPP Project represents a significant milestone in this journey, deploying world-class technology and efficiency standards to meet the UAE’s evolving power needs. We are delighted to announce Marubeni Corporation as our partner in the F3 Fujairah IPP project,” he stated.

Othman Al Ali, CEO of EWEC said: “The Fujairah F3 IPP project will apply one of the most efficient and advanced CCGT (combined-cycle gas turbine) technologies available in the region, producing more energy that aligns with the UAE Energy Strategy 2050’s carbon dioxide emissions reduction targets. It will play a strategic role in the growth and development of the UAE, providing secure and reliable power to match the needs of consumers in Abu Dhabi and the UAE.”

“As part of the tender process, EWEC conducted a robust due diligence exercise, in line with the UAE energy industry’s world-class standards, in order to select the most attractive technical and commercial bid for this project,” stated the senior official.

The construction of the Fujairah F3 IPP project, which is the largest CCGT power plant in the UAE’s current fleet, is expected to commence swiftly to enable EWEC to procure early power by summer 2022 and full generation by summer 2023.