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Kahramaa and Umm Al Houl Power Sign an Amendment to
Increase Water Desalination Capacity
May 07, 2019
General Electricity & Water Corporation “Kahramaa” and Umm Al Houl
Power Company have signed an amendment to their agreement on the
provision of electricity and water, under the patronage, and in
the presence of His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the
Minister of State for Energy Affairs, and the President and CEO
of Qatar Petroleum.
The amendment will increase water desalination capacity by 61.5
million gallons per day (about 280,000 cubic meters), which
enhances Kahramaa’s capabilities for a sustainable supply of
high quality water and electricity in Qatar.
The agreement was signed by H.E. Mr. Essa bin Hilal Al-Kuwari,
KAHRAMAA President, and Mr. Fahad Hamad Al-Muhannadi, the
Chairman of Umm Al Houl Power.
Under the agreement, Umm Al Houl will build and operate an expansion
to the existing plant that would raise its overall capacity to
198 million gallons of water per day by 2021. The expansion will
use the new reverse osmosis technology, which will improve
production efficiency and reduce the use of gas in production
systems. Umm Al Houl Power will act as the project’s developer,
while Samsung will be the main contractor, while the Spanish
firm Acciona will be the supplier and sub-contractor.
His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for
Energy Affairs, welcomed the signing and said: “this agreement
with Umm Al Houl Power is a continuation of Kahramaa’s efforts
to secure the country’s water and electricity needs in support
of the growth of the national economy and the requirements of
the comprehensive and sustainable development witnessed by the
State of Qatar under the wise directives and leadership of His
Highness the Emir. This also comes as an affirmation of our
environmental commitment to using state of the art desalination
technology such as reverse osmosis.”
Kahramaa has adopted a long-term strategy to assess future water and
electricity demand levels and to reach agreements with
independent energy and water providers to meet the increase in
demand and to enhance the security of water and electricity
supplies.
It should be noted that Umm Al Houl plant generates 2,520 megawatt
of electricity and 136.5mn gallons of drinking water per day, 60
million of which is desalinated using reverse osmosis and 76.5
is using multiple-stage flash technology. The plant is
considered one of the largest in the Middle East, and one of the
most environmentally friendly. It provides 30% of total Qatar’s
electricity needs and 40% of its water needs.
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