Water. Desalination + reuse
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/749211
Water. desalination + reuse December 2016 Market Opportunities 21 K u wa i t M a R K E t O P P O R t u N i t i E S Legislation Public-private partnership regime A new law on public-private partnerships (PPPs) in Kuwait came into effect in April 2015. The legal framework is designed to overcome the historical challenges of procuring PPPs in Kuwait, and to attract more private sector investment into the country. Specifically, it seeks to learn lessons from the Az Zhour North independent power and water project, according to law firm Ashurst Dubai. Some of the drawbacks of the old legislation included an IPO requirement for public joint stock companies; restrictions that limited an investor's ability to grant security to the project's lenders; and a restriction on the amendment, renewal or extension of a project. The new PPP law places an emphasis on the principles of transparency, openness, freedom of competition, and equality of opportunity. Vision 2035 Economic reforms Kuwait Vision 2035 aims to establish Kuwait as a leading financial and trading hub in the Gulf region by 2035, and to reduce the country's reliance on oil revenues. As part of this transformation, Kuwait wants to bring in more private sector practices, and capital to sectors traditionally managed by public agencies. This year, the Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (KAPP) has been reviewing proposals from consortia for phase two of the Az Zhour North power generation and desalination project, and two of these consortia have now reportedly gone through to the next stage. The project will be structured as a design, build, finance, operate and transfer contract. The water piece of the first phase of the project was built by Veolia subsidiary Sidem, under an EPC contract, and opened in 2015 (see photograph, below). The multi- effect distillation facility has total capacity of 486,400 m3/d. About 90 per cent of Kuwait's water demand is met by desalination, mostly through multi- stage flash systems. Water demand in the country is rising at about six per cent a year. Players Key figures in Kuwait Abdulaziz Abdullatif Al-Ibrahim The minister for electricity, water, and public works, Al-Ibrahim is Kuwait's senior politician tasked with overseeing major infrastructure projects across the country. Spending on infrastructure including roads is a big part of Kuwait's Vision 2035 programme, and the country awarded KD1 billion ($3.4 billion) of contracts in the third quarter of 2016, bringing the total value of contracts awarded in 2016 to KD3.6 billion ($33.2 billion). Mutlaq Al Sanei The general manager of the Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects, Al Sanei is instrumental in managing Kuwait's eight current PPP projects, with water projects well represented. Projects, including water deals, worth KD2.1 billion ($7.1 billion) are expected to be awarded by KAPP in the fourth quarter of 2016 and the first quarter of 2017. Abdulaziz Abdullatif Al-Ibrahim (le ) and Veolia's Antione Frérot Officially opened the IWPP at Az Zhour North in 2015