Tenders invited for Abu Dhabi desalination complex


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Private companies have been asked to tender for the development and operation of the Taweelah desalination complex and can own up to 40 per cent of the project.

The Taweelah desalination complex will be powered by the electrical grid, the Department of Energy announced.

More than 40 companies have expressed interest in the tender for the development, financing and operation of the water and power complex, which will supply 900,000 cubic metres of fresh water a day. Of these, 25 have been pre-approved by the government.

Taweelah is the first complex that will separate fresh water production and power production. Its two desalination plants will run on reverse osmosis, which does not require integration with a power plant.

Virtually all desalination activities are currently powered by natural gas-fired cogeneration plants.

“Since we are introducing our nuclear reactors into the network we decided to decouple power and water production, which has been historically combined,” said Mohammed Al Falasi, the undersecretary of the Department of Energy. “In this case it will reduce our dependence on burning gas to produce water, especially in the months of winter where we do not need as much power but we need still water.”

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Read more: 

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Reverse osmosis is less energy intensive than distillation, where water is evaporated.

The complex is expected to cost approximately Dh2 billion and open in 2022. But Mr Al Falasi noted that the project cost and the electricity required to produce fresh water, will be determined by private companies bids.

“The actual cost of the project is not something we can define now,” Mr Al Falasi said.

“We are encouraging competition by allowing the market to be innovative because this is an evolving technology, improving day after day and pricing is improving.”

The power and water complex will be built alongside its namesake power station, about 45km north of Abu Dhabi city. Construction will begin in 2020.

The emirate of Abu Dhabi is served by 11 desalination plants. Of these, four plants, in Delma, Mirfa and Fujairah, use reverse osmosis to produce 580,000 cubic metres of water a day. They account for 13 per cent of the emirate’s desalinated water production.

The Tawaleh plants will increase this to 30 per cent.

Waste water will be treated before it is released. The plant will be less susceptible to algal blooms that have shut desalination plants in the northern emirates, said department officials.

“We have to meet the standards set by the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi,” said Aisha Al Mansoori, an engineer in the Department’s privatisation directorate.

Almost all of the water consumed by humans in the UAE comes from desalination plants.

Water consumption in Abu Dhabi has risen at an annual rate of 9.5 per cent and Arab Gulf states account for at least 60 per cent of the world’s desalination capacity.

Demand in Abu Dhabi has more than doubled in the last decade and is expected to triple in the next 12 years, according to research by the Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi.

COMPANY PROFILE

Company: Bidzi

● Started: 2024

● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

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Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

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  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
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October 1 - Phil Nichol (stand-up comedy)

October 29 - Mandy Knight (stand-up comedy)

November 5 - Sinatra Raw (Fringe theatre)

November 8 - Imah Dumagay & Sundeep Fernandes (stand-up comedy)

November 13 - Gordon Southern (stand-up comedy)

November 22 - In Loyal Company (Fringe theatre)

November 29 - Peter Searles (comedy / theatre)

December 5 - Sinatra’s Christmas Under The Stars (music / dinner show)

ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures

October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Types of fraud

Phishing: Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.

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SIM swap: Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.

Identity theft: Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.

Prize scams: Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.

* Nada El Sawy

The biog:

Languages: Arabic, Farsi, Hindi, basic Russian 

Favourite food: Pizza 

Best food on the road: rice

Favourite colour: silver 

Favourite bike: Gold Wing, Honda

Favourite biking destination: Canada 

The biog

Favourite hobby: taking his rescue dog, Sally, for long walks.

Favourite book: anything by Stephen King, although he said the films rarely match the quality of the books

Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption stands out as his favourite movie, a classic King novella

Favourite music: “I have a wide and varied music taste, so it would be unfair to pick a single song from blues to rock as a favourite"

Some of Darwish's last words

"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008

His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.

Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
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The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
Company%20Profile
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