Acwa emerges preferred bidder for 180MIGD Dubai water plant
DUBAI, August 16, 2023
Acwa Power, a leading Saudi utility project developer and a leader in energy transition, has emerged as the preferred bidder for the construction and operation of the 180 million imperial gallon per day (MIGD) sea water reverse osmosis Hassyan Phase 1 Independent Water Producer (IWP) project, being set up at with an investment of AED3.35 billion ($914 million).
Announcing this today (August 16), Dewa said the project is the largest of its kind in the world for water production based on SWRO technology using solar energy.
This is the Dubai utility’s first Independent Water Producer (IWP) model project. The water desalination capacity in the emirate is currently 490 MIGD. This capacity will increase to 670 MIGD in 2026 with the completion of the project.
Dewa received 29 expressions of interest from international developers to implement this project. The Request for Qualification (RFQ) was released to market on October 18. Six international companies were qualified to submit their bids.
Dewa received two bids from Acwa Power and Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) in May this year in response to the Request for Proposal (RFP) issued last year in December.
On the project win, CEO Marco Arcelli said: "We are delighted to set the world record once again for the lowest water levelised tariff rate – in fact, this is the first IWP project in history to break the $0.4/m3 barrier for a SWRO plant of this scale. This has been made possible by the combination of innovation and our spirit to continuously improve the efficiency of our projects."
"We are honoured to have been entrusted this project by our longstanding partner DEWA, and we are committed to contributing towards Dubai’s integrated energy strategy 2030 to supply clean, affordable and responsible water to its communities," he added.
When complete in 2026, the Hassyan IWP will increase water desalination in Dubai from 2,227,540 million m3/day to 3,409,500 million m3/day.
This will take Acwa Power's overall water capacity to surge to 7.6 million cu m/day.
Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of Dewa, said: "We are building water production plants based on SWRO technology which require less energy than multi-stage flash distillation (MSF) plants, making it a more sustainable choice for water desalination. By 2030, we aim to produce 100% of desalinated water by a mix of clean energy and waste heat."
Dewa, he stated, has achieved a world record by receiving the lowest bid of $0.36536 per cu m of desalinated water.
"The new project aligns with Dubai’s unparalleled economic growth and the emirate’s thriving construction sector. This complements the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan, addresses the substantial population growth, and meets the steadily increasing demand for water in domestic, commercial, and other consumer sectors," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
