Communication Network - Nº28

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Business
FCC Aqualia set to manage the
two largest wastewater treatment
plants in Mecca, Saudi Arabia
The FCC water
management subsidiary
has been awarded the
contract for the operation
and maintenance of the
wastewater treatment
facilities in Hadda and
Arana in Mecca, Saudi
Arabia, for three years and
representing a business
portfolio of € 20 million.
FCC Aqualia has secured a contract com-
prising the operation and maintenance
of the two largest wastewater treatment
plants in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in consor-
tium with the local company Alkhorayef Wa-
ter and Power Company. The wastewater
treatment plants in Hadda and Arana treat
an average water flow of 250,000 m3 and a
have a maximum capacity to treat 375,000
m3 . The contract will run for three years and
has a business portfolio of € 20 million.
Mecca has a stable population of 1.5 mi-
llion people, growing considerably higher
during visits by pilgrims. It is estimated that
around 13 million annual visits occur each
year and that the maximum sporadic influx
throughout the month of Ramadan (during
Hajj festivities) is between 4 and 5 million
people. This situation creates significant
variations in the water flow from the source
to the treatment plants. With this new con-
tract, the third since the subsidiary began
in Riyadh in 2011, FCC Aqualia has firmly
established itself in the Middle East, in par-
ticular in the Saudi Arabian market.
The consortium comprising both com-
panies will be jointly responsible for: the
operation and maintenance of treatment
facilities and units, including workshops,
laboratories, electrical installations, service
road status, security systems, supply, sa-
nitation and drainage projects within the
facilities, environmental maintenance of the
facilities, laboratory team and conducting
analyses.
This project falls within the framework of
the program carried out by Saudi Arabian
authorities which aims to transform and
modernise the country’s water cycle ma-
nagement. In this context, the Saudi state
water company, National Water Company
(NWC), is significantly improving the opera-
tion and performance of the sector via the
incorporation of international companies
that are specialised in Operation and Main-
tenance.