Saudi water minister signs deals worth SR539m

Water and Electricity Minister Abdullah Al-Hussayen signed a number of contracts worth more than SR539 million, including one to establish the Kingdom\'s first tertiary sewage purification plant. The contract for sewage plant was won by a coalition of Al-Arab, Germany\'s BWT and Austrian ILF company, the Saudi Press Agency said, adding that the plant is first of its kind in the Kingdom. Speaking to reporters after signing the SR300 million contract to establish the plant along Al-Kharj Road in Riyadh, Al-Hussayen said the project, with a daily capacity of 200,000 cubic meters, would be completed within 34 months. \"This advanced sewage purification system is the best environment-friendly solution. It can also produce electricity at lower cost and reduce the use of chemical material,\" the minister said. Luay Al-Musallam, CEO of National Water Company, said 12 coalitions had presented their offers to win the project and the winner was picked after international experts reviewed the offers. \"The project aims at exploiting hidden renewable energy in sewage and reducing impact of gas emissions on the environment,\" Al-Musallam said. He disclosed his company\'s plan to establish three factories at every sewage purification plants in the Kingdom; first to produce quality water, second to generate electricity and the third for reclamation of useful organic substances. Meanwhile, Al-Hussayen signed a number of contracts worth SR239 million to implement water and sewage networks in various parts of the Kingdom. They include a sewage project in Darb in the Jazan province and another project to supply water for Najran. The new projects also include construction of Wadi Al-Rama dam in the Makkah province, water distribution networks in the Eastern Province, Madinah, Tabuk, Qassim and Hail as well as a sewage project in Jazan and installation of water pumps in Najran wells.