Abu Dhabi awards Mirfa 2 reverse osmosis desalination project to Taqa-Engie consortium

Abu Dhabi awards Mirfa 2 reverse osmosis desalination project to Taqa-Engie consortium

EWEC (Emirates Water and Electricity Company) announced on Monday that it has awarded its Mirfa 2 Reverse Osmosis (M2 RO) Independent Water Project (IWP) to a consortium of France’s Engie and UAE-based TAQA.

TAQA and ENGIE signed Water Purchase Agreement (WPA) with EWEC for the 120 million imperial gallons per day (equivalent to approximately 550,000 cubic metres per day) RO desalination plant, according to an EWEC press statement.

The project would be 60 per cent owned by TAQA, while the remaining 40 per cent will be owned by Engie, the statement said.

The project’s financial closure is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2023, enabling initial water production in summer 2025, and full production by third quarter of 2025.

TAQA will also hold a stake in the operations and maintenance (O&M) company, the statement noted.

Othman Al Ali, Chief Executive Officer of EWEC, said: "We look forward to this strategic collaboration with TAQA and ENGIE, which will see the development of the UAE’s third largest low-carbon intensive RO water desalination plant. The development of the M2 RO water desalination project enables EWEC to further accelerate its strategic initiative of decoupling water desalination operations from power generation and implement tangible and effective actions that