Power Engineering - Production starts at Fujairah plant, UAE

12 June 2003 - The Union Water & Electricity Company (UWEC) has started producing power and water at its 656 MW power unit and 100 million gallons a day (mg/d) water desalination plant in Fujairah in Abu Dhabi.

Production has started one month ahead of the project's schedule. By May 31, UWEC had produced 142 million gallons (mg) of water and 85 193 MWh of power, which was exported to the Federal Electricity & Water Authority (FEWA) network.

The production of power and water will increase gradually to reach the project's design capacity of 656 MW and 100mg/d in stages. The water plant will produce 62.5 mg/d of water by using the multi-stage flash (MSF) technology and 37.5 mg/d by using the reverse osmosis (RO) process. This makes the project the only one in the Middle East region and one of the biggest in the world, using a combination of the two water desalination technologies.

Water will be supplied to the Northern emirates and transported to Abu Dhabi through a 179-kilometer dual pipeline, which will have capacity to pump up to 180 mg/d of water, from the plant to Sweihan. Under instructions from Sheikh Zayed, UWEC will supply water to FEWA, which will distribute it to several towns including Fujairah, Ajman and Umm al-Qaiwain.

UWEC is also to build a second project - an up to 1000 MW power unit and a 100 mg/d desalination plant at Qidfa. The company has received pre-qualification documents from 14 international, regional and local companies for a turnkey engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract. Four international consultants - the UK's PB Power, Mott McDonald of the UK, Lahmyer International and Fitchner, both of Germany - have bid for the project management consultancy (PMC). PMC contract will be awarded in June 2003. The EPC contract expected to be awarded before the end of 2003.

UWEC is undertaking these power and water developments to meet rising demand for water in Abu Dhabi and the growing power needs of the northern emirates. The company will be playing a major role in the planned Emirates National Grid (ENG) and could also become an exporter of power to neighbouring countries through individual agreements or through the planned GCC power grid.

According to Electricité de France (EdF), the consultant for the ENG, UWEC could supply up to 2,000 MW of power to the national grid in 2010. On the first project, South Korea's Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Company is carrying out the Dh2.9 billion ($802m) contract for the power unit and the desalination plant, while a partnership of the local Al Jaber Energy Services and Technip Germany is undertaking the Dh1.6bn ($453m) contract for the 179 km dual pipeline to Sweihan, an 18 km spur to Al Dhaid in Sharjah, the water pumping stations and associated facilities.

UWEC was set up by the Abu Dhabi government in June 2001 with a paid-up capital of AED 1.5 billion ($409m). It plans to privatise the project in line with the ongoing privatisation of the water and power sector in Abu Dhabi. A foreign partner will be offered up to a 49 percent stake in the project, a structure similar to the one used by the Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (ADWEA) to privatise its Taweelah A2, A1 and Shuweihat independent water & power projects (IWPPs).

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