JEDDAH: Saudi water desalination production will rise up to 2015 in light of greater optimism about prospects for the economy and a much greater willingness among Saudi authorities to prioritize state spending toward critical infrastructure sectors like water, Business Monitor International's "Saudi Arabia Water Report Q3 2011" said Friday. The report sees the volume of water desalinated in the Kingdom rising to 1.206 billion cubic meters (m3) in 2011, compared to a previous estimate of 1.165 billion m3. The authorities claim Saudi Arabia's advanced treated water reuse capacity is growing by 30 percent a year and is expected to reach 2.2 million cubic meters per day (m3/d) by 2016, from a current level of 260,000 m3/d - an optimistic projection that BMI regards as having downside risk, the report noted. Saudi Arabia's water and wastewater pipeline network is also being upgraded and expanded, along with desalination. This is helping to improve supply, reduce leakage and reduce the proportion of the population - usually the poorest - who are not connected to a piped water supply and are dependent on expensive water supplied by tankers. In Jeddah, the National Water Company (NWC) is looking to boost water capacity to 1.2m3/d through 30 projects, the report further aid. Kig Abdulah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, announced last March a massive SR500 billion spending program to improve the lot of the average Saudi. Although there have been no allocations made specifically for water projects, BMI nonetheless anticipates a strong focus on ploughing state resources into critical infrastructure. Meanwhile, Finland's Poyry has secured an owner's engineering services contract from the Saline Water Conversion Corp (SWCC) for the Ras Az Zawr Power and Desalination Plant. Poyry will assist the client in the review of the EPC contractor's detail design and the inspection of workshop tests. Poyry will also execute site supervision of the contractor's construction and erection as well as the commissioning and testing for the project. The contract covers a 2650 MW Combined Cycle Project and a 1.025 million m3/day desalination plant in Saudi Arabia. The power plant has five 600 MW Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) Blocks and two 220 MW Single Cycle Gas Turbines (SCGT) units. The desalination plant consists of eight MSF Units (plus RO Units) capable of producing 1.025 million m3/day.
