A Joint Venture (JV) between Arabian Construction Co (ACC) and POSCO Engineering & Construction Co., LTD. (POSCO E&C) has been awarded a Dhs 1.6 billion contract for the engineering, procurement and construction of the Strategic Water Storage and Recovery System to be built in Liwa, Abu Dhabi.
The project – awarded to the JV by Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (ADWEA) in conjunction with the Environmental Agency of Abu Dhabi – is the first of its kind in the Middle East. It will consist of an underground aquifer storage facility with a capacity of 27 million tons of water being built 85 metres below ground in the Liwa desert for use "in the event of a water emergency".
According to ACC's Director, Wassim Merhebi: "ACC is honoured to have been awarded this highly innovative new project; a first of its kind in the region."
Merhebi added: "Due to its complexity and size, this project will certainly be a great addition to ACC's growing portfolio of mega projects across the region."
POSCO E&C's UAE General Manager, SK Park said of the win: "This is our first project in Abu Dhabi and we are proud to be taking part in such an innovative and strategic initiative."
The Strategic Water Storage and Recovery Project – which is set to be constructed about 250km south west of Abu Dhabi City – is based on an infiltration basin/recovery well system known as aquifer storage and recovery, which features water pipe lines, HV transmission lines, pump stations and a SCADA system. In the event of a water emergency, all water stored at the facility can be made available for pumping to Abu Dhabi City through a system of pumping stations and 161km of new pipeline that will connect to an existing pipeline system situated along the E11 highway.
According to Merhebi: "The government's goal is to be able to supply the city with 40 million imperial gallons of water per day (MIGD) for up to 90 days in the unfortunate event of a water emergency."
He added: "The facility will ensure that a complex regime of testing and analysis of the infiltrated water is undergone before the water is made available for recovery."
The project is set to begin in September and will take approximately 30 months to complete.
