Egypt is preparing to invite bids for the initial phase of its large-scale water desalination initiative under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) framework in the fourth quarter of 2024, reports Zawya.
This multi-stakeholder project, overseen by The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (TSFE) in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance’s PPP Central Unit, aims to develop renewable energy-powered desalination plants across the country. The goal is to achieve a total production capacity of 8.85 million cubic meters per day (m3/day) by 2050.
Phase I will see the construction of 15 desalination plants with a combined capacity of 3.35 million m3/day by 2025, according to Atter Hannoura, Director of the PPP Central Unit at Egypt’s Ministry of Finance. Speaking at a PPP forum in Dubai, Hannoura revealed that the first group of plants will consist of four facilities.
This first phase of the project is expected to attract an estimated $3 billion in investment, with each facility backed by a 30-year concession agreement, as highlighted in Hannoura’s presentation.
Initial tenders will be issued for two plants: one located in Dabaa with a capacity of 40,000 m³/day, and the other in El Hamam with a capacity of 190,000 m³/day.
These projects represent a combined investment of around $210 million. Preparations for the tender documents are already underway, with the official bid invitation set to be launched in late 2024.
In May 2023, the TSFE and the Ministry of Finance’s PPP Central Unit prequalified 17 consortia to participate in the first phase. These consortia were organized into four categories based on their experience and capacity to deliver. Hannoura explained that the government adopted a unified pre-qualification process to streamline the rollout of new projects, aiming to launch new batches of plants every five to six months once the necessary land is secured.
Hannoura also emphasized that environmental sustainability is a key consideration in the planning of these desalination projects, ensuring that all future phases align with Egypt's long-term ecological goals.
Egypt’s 30-year desalination strategy, which was initially announced in 2020, aims to significantly increase the nation’s desalination capacity from the current 1.3 million m3/day to 8.85 million m3/day by 2050, nearly an eightfold rise.
