Utilities

Lebanon: Power up

Lebanon's government is looking at a range of options to solve the country's chronic electricity shortages that threaten to slow economic development, though it will take much time and money to overcome years of low investments and unwillingness to reform the sector in order to meet the country's growing needs. Though the Lebanese economy performed well in 2009, and is expected to post growth of 5.8 per cent this year, this figure could be even better if the country has a reliable source of power. Much of the country experiences some form of electricity rationing, with scheduled power cuts or reductions in supply being a regular part of life for most Lebanese. The cost of these cuts runs across the economy, with loss-making state monopoly Electricité du Liban (EDL) being one the biggest drains on the budget, while shortages restrict industrial productivity. Furthermore, Lebanon has to import 96 per cent of its energy consumption, including almost all of the fuel used by EDL's power stations and the increasing numbers of private generators used to meet the shortfall in state production. This leaves Lebanon very vulnerable to price fluctuations and disruptions to supply. With oil prices again on the rise, EDL's import bill is also increasing, potentially adding to the US$1.5 billion of losses it recorded last year. EDL also suffers from illegal electricity connections across the country - avoiding meters and amounting lost revenue for the company - as well as unpaid bills. Though EDL has around 2200 MW of installed generation capacity, the utility is usually only able to keep 1600 MW operational. With national demand now well over 2300 MW and rising, the need for additional capacity and upgrades to existing facilities and the country's distribution network is a matter of urgency for consumers and the economy. In April, the finance minister, Raya Hafar Hassan, unveiled the draft budget for this year, with the document including funding for new power stations and the installation of electricity transportation networks. In total, the draft budget allocates US$322.6 million for new capital works, with the proposed power stations set to bridge the gap between existing demand and the current shortfall in production. (Source: OBG)

Egypt invests US$110 billion in electricity sector & wind power

Egypt's Electricity Minister, Hassan Younis said in a recent speech that his ministry has put to tender projects that aim to generate 1,000 megawatts of wind power this year. Younis said his ministry has laid out a plan to ratchet up the capabilities of the national network until 2027, noting that the projects included are estimated to cost US$110 billion. The electricity sector adopts a scientific approach to face the challenge of a growing power demand, including plans to diversify energy sources and promote renewable energy projects, he said. The ministry also aims to seize opportunities to cooperate with local and regional partners to set up projects that would benefit both sides. Younis went on to say that the ministry aims to help provide the investments necessary to set up power projects and upgrade electricity linkage projects.

Palm Utilities to help tackle UAE water issues

Palm Utilities, a leading private company that provides integrated sustainable utility solutions, has outlined new strategies to help resolve the UAE's future water challenges. Inherently, these integrate the latest advances in energy utilization, nano and molecular technologies as well as innovative water reuse and recycling systems, said a statement from Palm Utilities. This will be crucial as the company seeks to pursue various large-scale water desalination and wastewater treatment and reuse projects, helping address the region's long-term water utility issues, it added. Yousuf Kazim, CEO of Palm Utilities, said growing population and increasing industrialization had strained the fresh water supply levels in the Arab World, a trend that was evident in countries such as the UAE. "This has given rise to the importance of desalination as a key component in addressing the region's long-term water challenges, resulting in several billions of dollars being invested in various desalination projects across the UAE and in several other GCC countries," he pointed out. The GCC, which already accounts for more than half of the 11,000 desalination facilities worldwide, expects an eight per cent annual growth of desalination plants as water demand continues to increase sharply among Gulf countries, he added. The UAE, which is one of the world's largest per capita water consumers, is expected to increase desalination capacity by 76 per cent to 14.1 million cubic meters a day by 2016, according to a recent study by Japanese investment bank Nomura Securities. This comes as the UAE's natural water resources are expected to shrink by 16 per cent in the next decade, it added.

Septech wins major Oman desal contract

Septech, the region's water infrastructure expert, has won a contract from Oman's Public Authority for Electricity and Water (PAEW), to install the world's largest mobile desalination plant just outside of Muscat. Installation of the 24 Septech mobile water desalination units has started in Oman. Once operational, the units will supply 22.7 million liters of water to the residents of Muscat every day. The structure of the plant, a series of innovative pre-engineered and manufactured Sea Water Reverse Osmosis containers, allows for rapid deployment. The plant will be supplying nearly 10 per cent of the daily potable water needs of 1 million residents in the Omani capital. "A mobile water project on this scale has never been undertaken by any engineering company in the world. In months, not years, this project that will have an enormous impact on the water supply of Muscat," said David Heffernan, CEO of Septech. "The plant must supply an enormous amount of potable water every day, and it must start doing so quickly, but Oman also has some of the most stringent drinking water standards in the world, so the water produced must be in line with globally recognized drinking water standards." Septech has chosen General Electric Water and Process Technologies to supply the mobile water assets required to service the plant.

Sharjah: Powering up

By working to improve the emirate's distribution grid and secure new sources of gas to turn the turbines, Sharjah is hoping to avoid the power shortages that effected industrial growth last year. A series of power outages in early May, which officials from the Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA) said was a result of disruption to the distribution network, has prompted concerns that the emirate may experience summer blackouts as was the case last year, when high demand and technical difficulties combined to frustrate both the economy and residents alike. Part of the problem is that while SEWA is able to meet normal demand, it has little in the way of reserve capacity. Though the authority is working hard to increase output, with plans in to install new generators, it faces the prospect of being caught short if there is any failure of its infrastructure, as appears to have been the case in early May. Demand for electricity has risen sharply in the past 12 months, from 1557 MW in 2009 to just under 1700 MW, a 12 per cent increase according to SEWA figures issued in mid-May, further adding to the strain being placed on the utility's resources. In some ways, Sharjah has become a victim of its own success in being able to attract investment, in particular in the industrial sector, a high-level consumer of electricity. The emirate is home to more than 1600 industrial enterprises, accounting for up to 48 per cent of the UAE's industrial GDP, according to a recent report issued by the Sharjah Economic Development Department (SEDD). However, the emirate's continuing focus on industrialization may have to be balanced with the need to ensure infrastructure and energy resources are equal to the growing demands being made of them. (Source: OBG)

Bahrain Al Dur power plant to begin ops next month

Bahrain's BD2 billion (US$5.3bn) power and water plant Al Dur will begin commercial operations in June, it has been reported. The plant is expected to ease the burden on the kingdom's existing power plants and put an end to summer power cuts. The plant, located on Bahrain's southeast coast, will start producing 400 megawatts of electricity. This will more than treble to 1,245mw when fully operational by summer next year, according to the report. It will also help meet rising demand for water with a maximum output of around 48 million gallons. South Korean firm Hyundai Heavy Industries said construction on parts of the power project was ongoing. "We are progressing according to the schedule and have not really had any problems, the plant should be fully operational and supplying Bahrain with electricity and water by June next year," Ha Yong Man, project control manager said.

L&T wins US$190m Qatar water project

India's Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has secured an international turnkey project worth QR691.2 million (US$190m) from Qatar Public Works Authority (Ashghal) for advanced wastewater treatment and urban reuse. L&T said the project being implemented through its Water Technology Business unit is the largest of its kind in GCC based on an advanced technology "Sequential Batch Reactor (SBR)" followed by "Ultra-filtration. The scope of work includes design, supply, procurement, construction, testing and commissioning of the Doha South Sewage Treatment Works, Phase II expansion, the company said in a statement. The project to be executed on lumpsum turnkey basis is scheduled to be operational by 2012, it added. The technology is provided by ITT Corporation, US and construction by Galfar Al Misnad Engineering & Contracting, Qatar. The rated plant capacity will be 92 million liters per day for SBR and 187 million liters per day for ultra filtration.

Saudi Arabia: Combating waste

Following a recent series of floods in Jeddah, Riyadh and numerous smaller cities in the Kingdom, public discussion about environmental issues has increased significantly throughout Saudi Arabia. Jeddah, the Kingdom's second-largest city lies on the Red Sea coast. The city has grown quickly, from an estimated 1.4 million residents in 1986 to around 3.6 million today, and infrastructure development has understandably struggled to keep pace. Fadil Fouad Basyyoni, the president of Saudi ASMA Environmental Solutions (SAES), agrees. "Sewage is the most important environmental issue in Jeddah. The pipe network is just simply not there. The thinking over the last 25 years has been influenced by myths about septic tanks and the proximity of the city to the sea.” The estimates on the area of the city that is currently connected to the sewer pipes vary from 8-14 per cent, with around 80 per cent of houses using septic tanks. The use of percolating pits - septic tanks without a concrete bottom that allow sewage to "drain" into the ground - has led to soil and underground water contamination as well as a rise in the water table. According to Kammourie, "The lack of a proper sewer system has created an ecological disaster in Jeddah." In recent years, the waste from the city's septic tanks has been dumped in the Briman Sewage Lake, better known as Musk Lake, which lies about 40 kilometers away from the city center. However, environmental and health concerns following last year's floods, coupled with a royal decree ordering the emptying of the lake, have prompted city officials to find alternate solutions. One such solution has been the construction of the Hamra treatment plant undertaken by SKME after winning a tender issued by the Jeddah Development and Urban Regeneration Company. The plant, located 800 meters from Musk Lake, will have a capacity to treat 60,000 cu meters of waste per day once it is fully operational. It is currently in phase one and draining approximately 20,000 cu meters per day of the estimated 10 million cu meters in the lake. The entire process of draining the lake is estimated to take around 300 days (it started in mid-May), at which time the plant's entire capacity will be used to treat waste brought in from the city by tankers. SAES has proposed a solution that would see industrial liquid waste and municipal solid waste combined and converted to energy using advanced plasma technology. The proposal is currently in the final stages of negotiations with Jeddah Municipality and, if approved, could see a plant capable of treating 2000-3000 tons of waste per day up and running within two years. (Source: OBG)

General Electric receives contract worth nearly US$300m

GE has received a contract of nearly US$300 million to supply five steam turbines for a major expansion of the Saudi Electricity Company’s Qurayyah Open Cycle Power Plant in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. The five steam turbines will join 15 GE F-technology gas turbines already operating at the site, converting the plant to combined-cycle operation to help Saudi Arabia meet its goals for greater power generation capacity and efficiency.

Egypt, Congo eyeing more energy cooperation

Egypt Minister of Electricity Hassan Younis had talks with the Electricity Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo on ways to boost bilateral ties. They also discussed assistance in developing the electricity sector in the DRC through technical assistance and training. Younis said the meeting was held within the framework of a visit paid by DRC President Joseph Kabila to Egypt in May during which he had talks with President Hosni Mubarak on furthering bilateral relations particularly in the fields of agriculture, irrigation and energy. The Congolese Minister expressed his country's wish to benefit from the Egyptian expertise in its energy projects, especially in the establishment of hydroelectric stations and the expansion of power distribution networks to reach rural areas. Talks took up the updating of feasibility studies that had taken place in 1997 for the establishment of a number of dams on the Inga River as part of a mega project whose capacity, during its first phase, is expected to reach up to 40,000 megawatts.

Hyundai Heavy wins US$1.6bn power equipment order

South Korean shipbuilder and electric equipment maker Hyundai Heavy Industries said it had won a 1.94 trillion won (US$1.58bn) order from Saudi Arabia's Dhuruma Electricity Co. Hyundai said in a filing with the Korea Exchange the order was to build power generation equipment in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to be supplied by 2013.