Utilities Middle East - March 2010

Middle East

ESSENTIAL INSIGHTS FOR MIDDLE EAST WATER, GAS AND ELECTRICITY PROFESSIONALS

March 2010

• Vol 4. Issue 3

Licensed by Dubai Media City

REVERSING ROLES Reverse osmosis: its most significant discovery

TRICKLING TREATMENT Septech’s unconventional sewage recycling system

Is solar power set to make a breakthrough in the region?

MICROSOFT’S SMART GRID SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS REVEALED The smart software driving the engine of efficient energy consumption BusinessPublication Publication An An ITPITP Business

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CONTENTS

March 2010 Issue 3 2 COMMENT When will solar power make a true Middle East breakthrough?

4 REGIONAL UPDATE A round-up of some of the biggest headlines in the region.

10 REVERSE OSMOSIS Dow Water & Process Solutions explains the technological discovery which changed the face of reverse osmosis.

13 SMART SOFTWARE

27

David Heffernan, CEO, Septech.

Bill Mickols, Dow Water & Processing.

10

Microsoft’s utilities executives reveal their thoughts on the software behind smart grids and how they can be better implemented.

18 SOLAR POWER A comprehensive look at the solar power inudstry in the Middle East and how it can move forward.

Solar power in the Middle East.

24 KUWAIT PROFILE UME takes a look at the power and water sector of Kuwait and examines Honeywell’s case study in the country.

27 SEWAGE TREATMENT Septech introduces its underground bio filtration treatment system being used in palaces acorss the region.

18 Abed Hamilah, OSI.

31 INTERVIEW What new technology is Alstom currently employing and how is the firm moving forward?

38 TENDERS Opportunities available in the Middle East.

40 PEOPLE METER Sylvain Hijazi, Alstom Power.

www.utilities-me.com

31 40

Open Systems International’s Abed Hamilah explains how his firm is attempting to crack the Middle East market.

March 2010

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Utilities Middle East 1

COMMENT Middle East

Here comes the sun?

The solar power sector may finally be set to emerge

Registered at Dubai Media City PO Box 500024, Dubai, UAE Tel: 00 971 4 210 8000, Fax: 00 971 4 210 8080 Web: www.itp.com Offices in Dubai & London ITP Business Publishing Ltd CEO Walid Akawi Managing Director Neil Davies Deputy Managing Director Matthew Southwell Editorial Director David Ingham VP Sales Wayne Lowery Publishing Director Jason Bowman Editorial Group Editor Dan Canty Tel: +971 4 435 6257 email: daniel.canty@itp.com Senior Writer Peter Ward Tel: +971 4435 6436 email: peter.ward@itp.com Contributors Ventures Advertising Commercial Director Jude Slann Tel: +971 4 4356348 email: judith.slann@itp.com Sales Manager Raed Kaedbey Tel: +971 4 4356168 email: raed.kaedbey@itp.com Studio Group Art Editor Daniel Prescott Designer Angela Ravi Photography Director of Photography Sevag Davidian Chief Photographer Khatuna Khutsishvili Senior Photographers Efraim Evidor, Thanos Lazopoulos, Staff Photographers Jovana Obradovic, Rajesh Raghav, Ruel Pableo, Lyubov Galushko, Isidora Bojovic Production & Distribution

PV panels in the Middle East could become a more common sight, as they are in parts of Europe and China.

I

n 1977 during a televised speech, Jimmy Carter, the then President of the United States said: “Because we are now running out of gas and oil, we must prepare quickly for a third change, to strict conservation and to the use of coal and permanent renewable energy sources, like solar power.”

That was 33 years ago. Today, would we be shocked if we saw the same message conveyed

by Barack Obama? It represents a startling lack of progress in the fields of renewable energy and solar power. In the Middle East we have an unlimited amount of sun, yet still this region is not at the forefront of the solar power industry. Something is holding it back, whether it is politically or financially motivated.

But a hope remains for the region, and it comes in the form of the companies involved, and their government links. Masdar has been pushing solar forward and it recently invested in the PV technology firm Environmena.

This firm is now enjoying the added scope of business which such strong government contacts can provide. But should this be the case?

Surely if renewable energy is as important as pol-

iticians and governments constantly remind us, it should be as free a market as possible.

One major move which could accelerate the solar power sector in the Middle East, is the introduction of feed-in tariffs, which encourage end users and utilities to make use of solar energy.

But that step has not been taken, despite firms within the sector crying out for it.

In this month’s edition of Utilities Middle East, we delve into the solar power question, with the opinions of both established companies in the region, and those of companies attempting to break through here.

We also take a look at the software behind smart grids, courtesy of two Microsoft executives. They explain how these systems can bring us a better grasp on the renewables question.

Now the introduction of smart grid technology has given solar power a base from which to work and in some respect signs appear to be encouraging. Perhaps now is the time when solar power will finally come out from behind the clouds.

● March 2010

Circulation Head of Circulation & Database Gaurav Gulati Marketing Marketing Manager Daniel Fewtrell ITP Digital Director Peter Conmy ITP Group Chairman Andrew Neil Managing Director Robert Serafin Finance Director Toby Jay Spencer-Davies Board of Directors K.M. Jamieson, Mike Bayman, Walid Akawi, Neil Davies, Rob Corder, Mary Serafin Circulation Customer Service Tel: +971 4 435 6000

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Please contact itpimages@itp.com for further details or visit www.itpimages.com.

Printed by Atlas Printing Press LLC, Subscribe online at www.itp.com/subscriptions The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for error or omissions contained in this publication, however caused. The opinions and views contained in this publication are not necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are advised to seek specialist advice before acting on information contained in this publication which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the reader’s particular circumstances.

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To subscribe please visit www.itp.com/subscriptions 2 Utilities Middle East

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Published by and © 2010 ITP Business Publishing, a member of the ITP Publishing Group Ltd. Registered in the B.V.I. under Company Registration number 1402846.

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REGIONAL UPDATE

Bahrain eyes power connection Bahrain to connect to UAE grid by 2011 with further connections to follow in region Bahrain is on course to connect its electricity grid to the UAE by January 2011 if not earlier, according to the CEO of the Kingdom’s electricity and water authority (EWA).

Dr Abdulmajeed Ali Alawadhi said that the GCC interconnection project had not been affected by the global financial slowdown.

“On July 27, Bahrain’s energy grid was connected to Saudi, Kuwait and Qatar,” he said in an interview with research firm Oxford Business Group (OBG).

“The next phase will see connection with the UAE in early 2011. The issue of interconnection to Oman is being finalised and it is hoped that the network interconnection to Oman will be operational immediately after the UAE.” Alawadhi added that alternative energy was also under the spotlight in Bahrain following a decision to develop solar and wind plant facilities in the Kingdom.

“Solar and wind are available worldwide as commercially viable solutions,” he told OBG.

DEWA private contract popular More than thirty companies have applied to advise Dubai on its first privately-operated power and water plant, the head of government-run utility Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) said.

The utility of Dubai said last month it wanted to boost private sector involvement in its power and water sector to save costs.

The move marks a policy change for the UAE government, which had until now owned and operated all Dubai’s power plants and insisted no help was neccessary.

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March 2010

Bahrain has already connected to the Saudi, Kuwait and Qatar grids and now hopes to finalise connections to the UAE and Oman grids.

“A small solar wind plant will be built to produce electricity both to use as a prototype and to be commercially viable.”

Although financing of infrastructure projects has been an issue for private companies responsible for power and water projects in Bah-

rain, Alawadhi remained upbeat that the works would now be able to gather pace.

“We are working with private developers to solve the finance issues they had with the banks so Bahrain’s energy infrastructure projects remain on track.” he said.

“Some of the private sector’s electricity and water projects were delayed because financing fell through when the global economic crisis hit.”

“However, the financing is now in place and the projects are moving ahead,” Alawadhi concluded.

Aggreko signs $75m Oman, Panama contracts Aggreko has signed two major contracts worth a combined $75m, to supply 215MW of temporary power in Oman and Panama.

The Panama contract, thought to be Aggreko’s largest to date in Latin America, will see the firm provide 100MW to the national grid over 12 months. Aggreko will provide base load power for the grid at two locations at up at 115,000 volts.

The second deal, with Oman Power and Water Procurement Company, will see Aggreko supply 115MW across five sites in the Arab sultanate during the summer months of the year.

The Glasgow-based firm provides short-term and emergency power to national grids, utilities and major events such as the Bahrain F1 and the Winter Olympics.

In a statement, Aggreko’s chief executive, Rupert Soames, said: “These two contracts underline the global reach of Aggreko, and the ability to deliver power cost-effectively for short periods of time to help utilities overcome temporary shortfalls.”

The company, which lists on the FTSE 100, employs more than 3,500 people worldwide including about 200 at its Glasgow headquarters.

Aggreko was also last month involved in the powering of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

The firm supplied temporary power for the opening ceremony of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games in Canada.

“This is the 10th Olympic Games that Aggreko have worked on and we are excited to be helping the Vancouver Organising Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games host a special and memorable experience,” explained Soames prior to the event.

Aggreko had over 100 people working in Vancouver. www.utilities-me.com

REGIONAL UPDATE

Abu Dhabi invites bids Tender bids for US$2bn power plant now welcomed The head of the Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (ADWEA) has said that the emirate is to invite tender bids for the construction of a US$2 billion power plant in March.

Reuters reported that Abdulla Saif al Nuaimi, director of privatisation at ADWEA said that the plant will have a capacity of 1,600 megawatts and will help Abu Dhabi ramp up capacity to service its booming domestic demand for power in the emirate.

“We have started the process of prequalification and we are targeting sending the request for proposals (RFPs) early next month,” Nuaimi told Reuters.

“We expect to finalise selection of the developer by November this year, [make the] financial close by April 2011 and commissioning in summer 2013,” he added.

The new plant will be constructed using the independent power project (IPP) model which

Abdulla Saif al Nuaimi, director of privatisation at ADWEA said prequalification has started.

allows foreign engineering and contracting firms to take a stake in the project.

The UAE is taking steps to deal with the huge boom in domestic demand for electricity.

that the money would also be used to complete a number of current projects yet to be finished.

“This show comes at a time when DEWA has allocated Dhs6.42bn ($1.7bn) to implement new projects and complete current ones in the fields of electricity and water,

March 9-11 The Wetex exhibition, held in the Dubai Convention and Exhibition Centre

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DUPONT INVESTS $175M IN PV EXPANSION DuPont has announced an investment of US$175 million to complete the multiphase expansion of its Tedlar PV2001 series orientated film production line. Tedlar film is a component of photovoltaic backsheets.

The expansion will take place at the DuPont CircleVille, Ohio, facility and will use existing and retrofitted assets. The increased capacity means the firm can support global demand of over 10GW of photovoltaic module production.

EGYPT LAUNCHES THERMAL POWER INTERNATIONAL TENDER

In late 2009 it was announced that a South Korean consortium had won a $40 billion deal to construct a number of nuclear power facilities in the Gulf state, marking the countries first nuclear project.

DEWA readies $1.7bn investment warchest Dubai Water and Electricity Company (DEWA) has set aside a $1.7bn warchest to continue bringing new projects online.

In a press statement made to announce the March launch of utilities exhibition WETEX, the organisation’s chief executive indicated

HIGHLIGHTS

as part of its strategy to enhance the productivity of its network and plants,” DEWA CEO and managing director Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer said.

Al Tayer provided no further details as to how the money would be disbursed.

The changing domestic environment has led to DEWA’s decision to boost private sector involvement in Dubai’s power and water market by launching the emirate’s first Independent Water and Power Plant (IWPP).

The IWPP model is already heavily in use in neighbouring Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Oman and is now set for Dubai.

The Ministry of Electricity in Egypt has launched the first international tender for a thermal power generation plant in the country under the build-operate-own (BOO) system, local media has reported.

The power plant will have two 750MW units, with the possibility of a third unit being established at a later date, Al-Ahram has reported.

$104M CONTRACT AIMS TO IMPROVE UAE POWER CAPACITY Utility chiefs in the UAE have awarded a $104m contract in a bid to increase power supplies to the northern emirates.

ABB on Tuesday announced it had won an order from FEWA (Federal Electricity and Water Authority) to supply substations in an effort to meet a growing demand for electricity.

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Utilities Middle East 5

REGIONAL UPDATE

HIGHLIGHTS QATAR COOL LAUNCHES DC PLANT Qatar District Cooling Company has announced the operational launch of its second plant in the West Bay area of Doha, Qatar.

The plant has a capacity of 37,000TR and is connected through a network to the first plant which Qatar Cool built in the area, back in 2006.

“At Qatar Cool we are progressing quickly in implementing a comprehensive district cooling system that compliments the rapid growth of Qatar. Our district cooling system will allow for a greener, more economical way of cooling in the home, at work and in people’s leisure spaces,” reveals Fayad Al Khatib, Qatar Cool general manager.

MAJAN ELECTRICTY TO INVEST $57M The Muscat based Majan Electricity Company is to invest RO 22 million (US$ 57 million) into new projects over the next year, local media has reported.

The development plans are intended to help the company keep pace with growing demand in Oman, which estimated to be at 7% per annum.

QATAR EXPECTED TO AWARD POWER DEAL IN 2010 Qatar is expected to award a deal for a new 2,000MW power plant this year, a senior official from the Qatar Power company has revealed.

The country faces a potential power shortage of around 300-350MW from late 2010.

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March 2010

Qatar studying Areva Qatar considers investing petroleum revenue in nuclear power Qatar may invest in Areva SA in order to help the company fund an expansion in the nuclear power market, the Prime Minister of the country has revealed.

“We are studying the matter,” Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jasim Bin Jaber Al Thani said at a meeting with reporters in Doha.

Qatar is the holder of the world’s third biggest natural gas reserves and plans to raise its liquefied natural gas (LNG) output by 42% this year, and is using the increased revenue from petroleum to fund investments in international companies such as Areva.

Last year the country increased its stake in Volkswagen AG to 17% and the sovereign wealth fund of Qatar is also the largest shareholder in Sainsbury Plc and Barclays Plc, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Areva chief executive officer Anne Lauvergeon revealed that the firm had found investors willing to participate in a capital increase.

In June last year, the company said it planned to sell a 15% stake and divest its power grid opera-

Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jasim Bin Jaber Al Thani.

tion to finance the expansion. The transmission and distribution unit of Areva was sold for more than $5.5 billion, Lauvergeon revealed.

Areva also recently announced it had acquired the solar thermal sys-

tems manufacturer Ausra. The deal is expected to be completed in six months and Areva has described the agreement as a way of launching the firm’s new global solar energy business.

SWCC in multi-million dollar revamp for plants Saline Water Conversion Corp (SWCC), the Saudi state run utility, is spending hundreds of millions of dollars to revamp its power and water plants, in an attempt to extend their lifespan, an SWCC official has said.

The revamp would lengthen the lifespan of SWCC’s plants, saving the cost of having to build new facilities, SWCC’s vice governor for operation and maintenance affairs, Thabet Al Luhibi, said.

Power demand in Saudi Arabia is growing at around 7% per year, and this is stretching the grid of the Kingdom, as it spends billions of dollars expanding its economy.

“If I build a new plant today, definitely production would cost me more than extending the lifespan of the existing plant,” Luhibi said.

The government has made around 1.3 billion riyals available ($346.7 million) for future work, Luhibi said, on top of the 3.5 bil-

lion riyals SWCC has already spent since launching the overhaul back in 2001.

Extending the life of just over half the plants would save the kingdom around 1 billion riyals per year, he said.

SWCC is the second largest power producer in Saudi Arabia and has 36 power and water plants across the Kingdom, which account for 5,000MW of power and 3.2 million cubic metres of water. www.utilities-me.com

REGIONAL UPDATE

Smart grid sector set to boom Global market to increase to $15.8bn by 2015 according to new report The global smart grid market is expected to grow from US$4.5bn to $15.8bn by 2015, according to a report by Lux Research.

The report states that countries around the world are planning to add intelligence to their power grids, and investment in the sector is now expected to increase rapidly.

“The smart grid offers huge opportunities for investors, companies and utilities. But many of those opportunities are fast-moving targets,” said Jacob Grose, a senior analyst at Lux Research, and the report’s lead author.

“The most successful players will be those who can navigate a shifting

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landscape of market segments, and partner with companies able to capitalise on opportunities before their competition,” he added.

According to the report, the measurement and communication segment of smart grids has the early momentum and is expected to top $5bn by 2015. Smart meters and supporting networking infrastructure technologies are seeing the earliest growth, as governments and utilities recognise that better management of electrons first requires better management of information across the grid.

It also states that the analysis and services segment is poised for explo-

The smart grid market is expected to increase considerably by 2015, according to reports.

sive growth. Analysis and services revenues could make up the largest piece of smart grid business by 2015.

While revenues are currently below

$1.4bn, companies in this sector will likely see them grow at a 30% CAGR, leading to revenue totalling over $6.7bn by 2015.

March 2010

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Utilities Middle East 7

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WEB HIGHLIGHTS

ONLINE ANALYSIS

ONLINE ANALYSIS

Top Masdar execs quit as bosses order rethink Two top executives are believed to have quit the firm, as CEO Sultan Al Jaber is understood to have demanded a rethink of the project, and a six week review of the development.

Most popular headlines EDITOR’S PICK

Expert view: The automation knowledge crisis Jeff Swindler reveals the problems surrounding automation knowledge in an exclusive article for Utilities-ME.com.

BREAKING NEWS AND VIEWS FIRST

Hans Blix heads UAE’s nuclear advisory group Former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency will head up the UAE’s advisory group on nuclear power in the country.

Qatar signs deal with German solar panel maker SolarWorld AG is to produce silicon, the main ingredient in solarenergy panels, in the Emirate of Qatar.

Smart grids can save GCC up to US$10 billion Smart metering and smart grids can save GCC utilities and governments US$510bn according to a report by AT Kearney. www.utilities-me.com

1. Top Masdar execs quit 2. ABB secures Abu Dhabi water contract 3. Qatar signs deal with German solar panel maker 4. UAE, US strengthen nuclear ties 5. GE signs Pakistan MoU 6. Hans Blix heads UAE’s nuclear advisory group 7. Aggreko powers winter olympics 8. Areva bags India power deal 9. Japan and Saudi to create desalination giant 10. GE wins $200m Iraq contracts

SPOT POLL

Will you be attending Wetex 2010 in Dubai?

YES 62.0%

NO 19.0 % NOT SURE 19.0 % March 2010

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Utilities Middle East 9

REVERSE OSMOSIS

Reversing a trend Bill Mickols, senior research scientist at Dow Water & Process Solutions, on his major breakthrough in reverse osmosis technology Can you provide details of your study into the kinetics of interfacial polymerisation?

The kinetics of interfacial polymerisation is very different from other chemistries because it is diffusion controlled, which means it is so fast that it is almost impossible to change. This led me to look a four or five very different approaches to control the polymerisation.

It is very difficult to improve the amount of water going through the membrane, or flux, and at the same time reduce the amount of salt going through the membrane. The extra low energy (XLE) chemistry increased the flux by more than 100%, and produced higher rejection for the same fluxes for already produced membranes. This not only gave us the brackish water XLE but also the seawater XLE and ULE membrane. These were the highest flux reverse osmosis membranes at their time.

Our basic chemistry understanding of kinetics and packing of the FT-30 polymer allowed us to change

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March 2010

“Today, the productivity of a single seawater reverse osmosis element has tripled” Bill Mickols, senior research scientist at Dow Water & Process Solutions

the membrane performance with no detectable change in polymer structure. Basic chemistry of polymers and how water moves through polymers still offers us massive improvements in designing improved performance into reverse osmosis membranes. These types of studies will give us flux, fouling resistance and rejection improvements. These changes will be the fuel for further savings in water costs.

How did this work change the course of reverse osmosis desalination?

Throughout the 1960s, reverse osmosis membrane technology remained relatively expensive and

cost-prohibitive for many companies and municipalities to implement. With the advances made through both my work and John Cadotte’s, we’ve managed to create an industry-breakthrough that has lowered the price point of reverse osmosis technology while enabling growth in the use of reverse osmosis membranes for water purification. Using a unique spiral-wound design previously never used in the industry, John Cadotte and I produced a high-recovery membrane element with improved water flux and greater ability to tolerate pH and temperature variation.

Over the last 20 years since John invented the FT-30 reverse osmo-

sis membrane they have improved even more.

Today, the productivity of a single seawater reverse osmosis element has tripled, and the water quality being produced by the same element has also improved so you are not only purifying more water from the elements, but you are also getting improved, pure water quality.

High productivity seawater elements were not considered useful because of design limits in seawater plants. With the advent of rejections exceeding 99.75% and new chemistry to give elements three to four times higher productivity, we found we needed new designs. With our new chemistry we had uniquely developed seawater elements at 12,000 to 14,000 gpd range. This allowed us to place different element types at the beginning and the end of the vessels keeping the productivity nearly constant through the vessel.

Normally, the productivity dropped by a factor of eight to 10.

This allowed us to produce twice the water from the same vessel. This

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REVERSE OSMOSIS

BILL MICKOLS IN PROFILE Bill Mickols is a research scientist for Filmtec Inc – acquired by Dow Water & Process Solutions. He worked with the late John Cadotte in 1969 in discovering a key element of membrane chemistry that enabled manufacturers to reduce the cost of reverse osmosis membranes.

Bill has been recently selected by the American Chemical Society (ACS) as a co-recipient for the 2009 Heroes of Chemistry Award.

In 2009 Bill Mickols has been named to the board of directors for the North American Membrane Society (NAMS). NAMS is the only professional society in North America that promotes all aspects of membrane science and technology, ranging from fundamental studies of membrane material science to process application and development. As a board member, Mickols worked with NAMS to foster the development and dissemination of knowledge in membrane science and technology, as well as promote the collaborative efforts of researchers, technologists and end-users in the synthetic membrane community.

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is by definition a doubling of the vessel efficiency, and can be used to cut the cost of the reverse osmosis segment by 50%.

A more useful approach is to use this concept to go to higher recovery and decrease the costs of the pretreatment and the reverse osmosis portion. This concept is called an internally staged design. Since this work occurred, every membrane manufacturer is now fighting to enter this high efficiency market.

The internally staged design concept was first trialed in the EUWP mobile desalination system.

Years later, this research prototype was also used successfully to provide water to the Biloxi Region Medical Center in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

One of the other benefits of the reverse osmosis membranes is that even though you are supplying

energy to a pump and that pump is pressurising water in order to push the raw water through the reverse osmosis membrane, the energy can come from any source.

It can come from a traditional fossil power plant, or through a combination of fossil and wind power, like some desalination plants in Australia. So, reverse osmosis now has the ability to use the cheapest local energy available, as well.

What is in the pipeline for the future?

Reverse osmosis membrane efficiency should continue to improve, and in my opinion is a very bright path for the future—not only in high-pressure applications, but also in low pressures.

For instance, there is a lot of effort now going into wastewater reuse.

March 2010

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Utilities Middle East 11

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3 ds f re s h wat e r n e e p ro v i di n g o t d e t t i m m o c 4. Be st ro n g s u ppo rt pa bilit i e s a c l a b o l g r e f f 5. O

t h e-a rt f o e t a t s g n i r e Of f e c h n o l og y t s i s o m s o e s r e re v rg y s a v i nyg e n e e v i t a v o n n I c h n o l og R e cu pe rat o r t e a li st i c e p s n o i t a n i l a De s Ex pe ri e necdeds e&rv ice s co m m itt Glo ba l reae rcthi s, e loca l ex p

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SMART GRID TECHNOLOGY

Smart

Software

John Arnold, managing director and Larry Cochrane, industry technology strategist of Microsoft’s worldwide power and utilities industry division, explain the software behind smart grid systems

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S

mart grid is the hot topic on every utility executive’s mind around the world.

The European Commission estimates that US€1 trillion will be spent improving Europe’s electricity network and generation capacity by 2030 in response to supply challenges, security requirements and climate change. As a result, the deployment of smart grids will play an important role. In France, some €6.2 billion will be spent on smart grid initiatives from 20092016. In the UK, new meters will be installed with in-home information displays over the next 10 years - a total of 26 million installed at an

estimated cost of £7 billion to £9 billion. According to a recent IDC report, in EMEA intelligent grid IT spending will reach $8 billion in 2010 and this is expected to grow by 27% in the next three years .

In the United States it is estimated that some $70 billion will be spent on smart grid projects in the next few years, and that many tens of billions more will be spent at utilities around the world.

Additionally, in November 2008, the Chinese government approved a $629 billion stimulus plan, including approximately $169 billion for utilities. And, the Indian government currently has a programme

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Utilities Middle East 13

SMART GRID TECHNOLOGY

underway that has an estimated $1.5 billion targeted for smart grid technologies. As the Hindustan Times puts it, “India is gasping for energy,” with 76 million rural households that have never turned on their first light bulb, and projections for 700,000 megawatts of additional generation to support its expanding economy and population. Approximately $450 million will be invested in smart grid projects in Australia, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey in the next few years, according to news reports.

US Federal government involvement in smart grid development also will provide significant impetus, and business opportunities.

For example, President Barack Obama recently announced $3.4 billion in government grants to improve the efficiency of the nation’s electric power transmission network.

The grants will be used to replace the country’s ageing electricity transmission system with smartgrid technologies to improve transmission efficiency and reliability and accommodate additional

energy generation sources .

The smart grid, or smart energy ecosystem as Microsoft defines it, becomes smart by injecting software into the various control points in the power system, so that households and businesses have ready access to timely, user-friendly information that can help them make smart choices about their energy use. While adding data acquisition solutions to a smart energy ecosystem helps provide additional, valuable data, the real benefit will be the insights created by the integration of ecosystem-wide information and the analysis and presentation of the information.

Jon Arnold, managing director, Microsoft’s worldwide power and utilities industry.

“The smart grid becomes smart by injecting software into the various control points in the power system ”

SMART GRID SAVINGS Smart metering and smart grids can save GCC utilities and governments US$5-10bn, according to a report by AT Kearney.

Based on analysis of the energy sector in this region, the firm believes the GCC to be on the forefront of the smart grid revolution.

“Smart meters are the technology of the future to measure real-time-electricity which enable consumers for the first time to control and monitor their electricity consumption via the internet or home displays. Pilots have shown that ‘consumption aware’ and ‘informed customers’ reduce their consumption by around 10%,” said Christian von Tschirschky, principal, AT Kearney Middle East.

Smart grids allow direct intervention of a utility company into selected consumers’ consumption during peak times.

At A.T. Kearney we estimate that GCC utili-

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ties and governments can avoid investments of around $5-10bn into peak load capacities, up until 2020. In addition they can potentially reduce the peak load demand by 10-20 percent through effective customer behaviour changes, that evolve with smart metering implementation and the usage of remote control of air conditioning systems,” added von Tschirschky.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia are currently piloting smart grid projects and it is expected that these countries will adopt the technology relatively quickly.

“The investments in smart metering will payoff, considering the cost reduction in operations and the reduced investment demand for additional power plants. It is an efficient way of managing and securing electricity supply as well as the future contributions from alternative energy,” concluded von Tschirschky.

ESTABLISHING NEW BUSINESS MODELS Utility industry executives are increasingly concerned about the possible costs involved in changing their business models to enable the development of the smart energy ecosystem. For example, utility company CIOs who have responsibility for data collection and warehousing for millions of customers, as well as all related business and generating operations, are looking for solutions that help in-house staff to support and fully respond to the challenges of smart grid scale and interoperability.

The transition of the power and utilities business to the new smart energy ecosystem may well be the most significant change to shape the industry since its inception.

New processes such as end use loads dynamically participating in the ecosystem in a meaningful way, and new data requirements such as the 2,880 fold increase moving from one customer billing sample per month to 15 minute samples for a 30-day month, will significantly change the landscape. Smart metering, automotive electric propulsion, renewable generation, new communications, new business models and a

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SMART GRID TECHNOLOGY

host of new industry players will all shape the future. The outlook can be a daunting challenge for anyone in the power and utilities computing arena.

To succeed, utilities will need a holistic view of how the smart grid fits into a smart energy ecosystem, as well as a strong foundation for migrating to the new infrastructure and services necessary to interact with, monitor, control and report on the assets of this new power system. This is especially true as utilities and the energy value chain reconfigure their business processes to establish new business models and capture new opportunities as they arise.

ARCHITECTING A SMART ENERGY ECOSYSTEM A technology architecture is needed to support the transition of the power and utilities business to the new smart energy ecosystem.

The technology architecture of the smart energy ecosystem, however, won’t be confined to the need to revise business practices for workforce, consumer and regulatory changes. It will also need to be an enabler of new technologies, some we know about, and some that are yet to come.

For example, a new generation of field and home devices that have the ability to make local decisions using two-way communication capabilities will allow customers to better monitor, control and schedule energy consumption, as well as respond to demand response events and pricing signals. Utilities or independent service providers could use these devices to extend their operational capabilities by facilitating registration of the devices in energy programmes that permit the power provider to adjust schedules to provide more efficient and balanced operation of distribution networks.

The smart energy ecosystem also will require new computing

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It is hoped through smart grid technology some of the pressure currently on power plants in the Middle East and globally can be lifted.

paradigm approaches. Real-time energy management systems, whether at the transmission or distribution levels, will continue to have rigorous performance and reliability constraints.

A smart energy reference architecture recognises that close coupling of all the new participants to the operation of the real-time systems will prove to be fragile and unreliable over the long term.

The scale of connected smart energy systems will grow to new levels with the addition of the active participation of loads (end-use customers) and a multitude of tiny new devices. Systems will need to be designed to be flexible and adaptive to autonomous behavior.

The true measure of success will be building a working system out of autonomous independent unreliable devices and participants.

The smart energy reference architecture as a result must enable interoperability in order for the ecosystem to develop in a cost effective manner. New solutions must work with previous utility technology systems in order to

“The reference architecture for the smart energy ecosystem will provide a roadmap for utilities to solve their integration issues. ”

Larry Cochrane, industry technology strategist, Microsoft’s power and utilities industry.

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Utilities Middle East 15

SMART GRID TECHNOLOGY

“The reference architecture will improve customer service and reduce the impact of energy usage on the environment”

protect those investments. Pragmatic integration approaches will need to be considered and the reference architecture should be flexible to allow deploying new components without custom integration.

Otherwise, the vision for the ecosystem will not be pragmatic and will go unfulfilled.

THE INTEGRATED UTILITY OF THE FUTURE As the worldwide utility industry rushes forward with new smart grid projects funded by national stimulus programmes, they will need sound, tested technologies and clear architectural strategies that help them to succeed as stewards of taxpayer money.

A reference architecture for the utilities industry’s smart energy ecosystem, consequently, is needed to help create a world where thousands of smart devices can seamlessly and securely plug into the grid thanks to common standards and interoperability

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March 2010

frameworks, just as the plug and play model allows thousands of devices to seamlessly plug into PCs today.

This reference architecture can serve as the basis for the development of the “integrated utility of the future” -- enabling utilities to enjoy significant benefits from ever greater collaboration, especially as the smart energy ecosystem, including the smart grid, evolves and requires the integration of everyday business processes and regulatory compliance.

By having the reference architecture for the smart energy ecosystem available to them, enterprise customers will have the solutions they need to make the smart grid a reality. The reference architecture for the smart energy ecosystem helps utilities by providing customers a method of testing the alignment of information technology with their business processes as they evaluate how those IT solutions fit the requirements of

the smart energy ecosystem and create an integrated utility.

The reference architecture also will aid independent software vendors (ISVs) in their efforts to create new solutions that serve the needs of the smart grid/smart energy ecosystem, and it can serve as a basis for the IT industry to discuss in depth and develop interoperability standards.

And, not least, the reference architecture will improve customer service and reduce the impact of energy usage on the environment. It not only will enable utility customers to take advantage of the greater availability of “green energy” from sustainable sources such as wind and solar, but also will encourage them to substantially cut their energy usage, and costs, through new tools, including the direct feedback from smart metering systems and advanced energy usage analytics, as well as indirect

feedback from improved billing processes.

In short, the reference architecture for the smart energy ecosystem will in the future provide a roadmap for utilities to solve their integration issues.

It will help to show how applying standards for solving integration issues across the enterprise can enable and accelerate the smart energy ecosystem.

For example, by unlocking the data that currently exists in disparate systems or silos across the whole utility value chain.

It also will empower users to drive improvements in real time, as well as to accelerate continuous improvement over time, especially as technologies and approaches to enabling the smart energy ecosystem advance and evolve over time.

In essence, the reference architecture helps puts the smart in our future’s energy ecosystem.

GLOBAL SMART GRID FIGURES US€1 trillion - estimated spend on Europe’s electricity network by 2030 €6.2 billion – amount spent in France on smart grid initiatives, 2009-2016 $169 billion – approximate figure China will spend on utilities as part of stimulus plan US$5-10bn – amount Middle East governments can save through smart grids according to reports

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SOLAR POWER

Solar

revolution Solar power in the Middle East is not yet widespread. Utilities Middle East asks why?

18 Utilities Middle East

â—?

March 2010

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SOLAR POWER

S

olar power in the Middle East shouldn’t really be rocket science, there is an abundance of sun, an energy deficit and now a drive towards environmentally friendly power sources. So why is solar power not implemented on a wider scale?

“It’s a good news bad news thing in the entire region. The good news is that there is an extremely good solar resource. Solar power system installed here will produce about twice as much electric-

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ity per year compared to a cloudy region such as Germany or a country like that. So it is a very substantial solar resource from which to work,” explains Sander Trestain, vice president, technical at Environmena.

He adds that governments in the region are now moving towards placing very strong alternative energy policies, which will encourage the use of renewable energy in this region further, stating the government of Abu Dhabi can be

seen at the forefront of this drive.

However there are also challenges to implementing power in this region.

“The bad news is that it is very early, so there are no formal feed-in tariff programmes in Middle Eastern countries, and that is the fundamental key policy required to drive solar, as you see in Germany and Japan and California,” states Trestain.

It is a view echoed by many in the solar power industry. “Every

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Utilities Middle East 19

SOLAR POWER

region in every country, it is a regulatory market because you have a feed-in tariff. We need it here and then the system will work without any subsidiaries,” comments Frederic Conchy, president, Exosun.

Exosun is a firm which designs photovoltaic plants, and is trying to break into the Middle East market.

“In the Middle East we have just started and have had very good contacts with big companies here.

We had a booth at WFES for the first time this year and I think we will be back here next year. So we are just starting in this region but there is a big possibility of some good business,” Conchy says.

There have been few large scale solar projects in the Middle East and this is having an impact on the industry, y according g to Trestain.

“There is very, very little installed capacity here. There are a handful of projects which we have done, a couple of smaller to midsize systems, there are a couple of systems in Saudi Arabia but you can count them on your fingers, how many solar power systems there are in the Middle East region,” he reveals.

“So there is still a lot of education particularly about technology risks and people

Sander Trestain, vice president, technical, Environmena.

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March 2010

don’t understand the reliability of solar and how it is a really very mature technology now and a real power solution. So those are the challenges, we are so early in the process,” he adds.

The Middle East region poses a number of challenges to solar technology, most notable, and publicised, of which is how dust and sand can affect the photovoltaic panels used in collecting solar power. Conchy believes knowing the region and its climate is one of the most important factors for a company breaking into the Middle East market. “When designing plants, you need a very good solution and to know the amount of kw/h you can produce in each different region. We know that regarding g g sand and dust there are specific problems you can have here. We need a specific product for this region, taking

“There are no formal feed-in tariff programmes in Middle Eastern countries, and that is the fundamental key policy required to drive solar” Sander Trestain, vice president, technical at Environmena

into account the sand and all the other factors. Sand is the main issue here though.”

Trestain, on the other hand, believes that the problem of dust and sand on photovoltaic panels has been over-hyped. “For photovoltaic technology dust does not seem to be an issue at all, we have been operating a 10MW solar power plant for about half a year now so s we have got a very good feel for the performance and output of it, and essentially the dust is not an issue.”

“That doesn’t mean the panels does don’t need to be cleaned, but it is a remarkably remarkabl low tech solution – we use a big broom to sweep them off now and then, that’s it!

The frequency frequen of cleaning ranges fairly dramatically throughout dram the year because there are very bec dusty times, when it is windy in the spring and an fall, and then in the summer here it’s actually not very dusty at all,” he h continues.

He also reveals that followr ing these cleaning techniques has meant results have been conre sistent with what was projected prior to the commissioning of the system. system The solar system employed by the company emplo has been watched with much anticipation, and mu results don’t appear to re have disappointed. h “The key number which is probably of interest to everyone is the annual power output for 10MW, which is

17,500MW hours per year. That was our projection before we built it and that is what the power output is now. Any solar expert can take that number and do some very simple linear math and see what any size solar power system can put out. And it’s quite impressive, literally you would see half of that energy coming out in a more northern climate,” Trestain says.

As with any renewable energy technology in the Middle East, the place to be is Masdar City, and Masdar is very much a watchword among the solar power industry. “We know that Masdar is big here and we have already looked at Masdar City for business. We know that aside from Masdar there are other companies here and we know that people want to use the technology and we think we can work with them,” says Conchy.

For Environmena, Masdar recently became much more than a watchword. “We closed our second round of financing recently, it was a $15m round, and the largest shareholder now being Masdar.

Good Energy, which is one of the leading and largest cleantech funds in the world, based out of the UK and Zouk, another based out of the UK. There is a big consortium of fairly high influence investors, including a government entity,” states Trestain.

He adds that first on the agenda for the company will be expansion, using the cash raised from the new investment. “Our aim is to spread our wings a little more in the region and establish a larger preswww.utilities-me.com

SOLAR POWER

ence in the immediate Middle East countries as well as further away.

So that is item one in the next few months. Item two is that we are going to be permitted to pursue some larger scale deals with these new relationships with our new investors.”

The relationship with government-owned Masdar will open a number of doors for Environmena, a large amount of business in the energy sector is government to government, and the firm will now have access to these deals. The new investment will also give Environmena access to a host of new technology, which is being developed by its various investors. This kind of government led investment seems to tip the scales firmly in favour of companies which they back, leaving it tougher for break through firms to make an impact on the market.

The long term aims of Exosun slightly are more modest, yet without government backing, the firm faces a tougher challenge. “For the year, we hope to find a real partner

Frederic Conchy, president,

WIDE SCALE SOLAR Desertec is an initiative which was launched in July last year.

The proposal involves a number of concentrating solar power systems, PV systems and wind parks being located in the Sahara Desert.

The electricity produced would then be transmitted to European and African countries through a super grid of high voltage direct current cables.

Some industry members believe it has the potential to revolutionise the energy market.

who wants to develop long term business in the region and who wants to believe in our capabilities to help them and work with them.

Alone we are nothing. We have already started looking for partnerships in the Middle East and in Abu Dhabi,” states Conchy.

One of the major drawbacks to solar power is that it cannot be utilised on its own. As there is no supply during the night, there must always be a sec-

ondary source of power. However, those inside the industry do not believe this should be a major problem.

“Solar by its nature is never going to be a 100% power solution and you can say that about any type of yo power. We will always have a portpo folio of different types of power, fo what percentage makes sense wh varies from region to region,” va explains Trestain. ex ““Every day you have this curve of power production. That curve of power production almost perfectly matches the curve of energy fe demand from any given city or de building or community. So solar bu power systems produces power po when its needed, during the wh middle of the day when businesses m are running and air conditioners are turned on to the max,” he adds.

Solar power has the added bonus that it is producing

power around midday, when energy demand is typically peaking, meaning it is there when it is most needed.

Governments in the Middle East are investing in solar power, there is no denying that fact.

But what will really drive solar power technology forward in this region, is the introduction of feedin tarrif. The potential is there in the region, and right now a relatively minor sticking point is stopping that potential being realised. Despite this, the companies involved are keeping the faith in the power of the sun.

“My hope is to reduce the price of solar kw/h price and make it competitive with other technologies and I think the coming years we are going to see that happen, and we will have a solar revolution. It is coming. I believe more in the future of solar than any other power,” concludes Conchy.

“Alone we are nothing. We have already started looking for partnerships in the Middle East and in Abu Dhabi. ”

Exosun.

Frederic Conchy, president, Exosun

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KUWAIT FOCUS

Addressing the balance Kuwait is oil rich but struggling for power and water. Projects such as those Honeywell has been involved in are attempting to plug the gaps

K

uwait is a complex country, and its power and water issues appear to live up to that billing. According to local media reports, this summer the country will face power shortages which will cost the country million of dollars, due to the failure of the country’s emergency plan, which was made back in 2007.

The Ministry of Electricity and Water is reportedly planning to purchase 100 mobile diesel-operated generators according to AlSeyassah daily.

These problems do not come from a lack of resources. Kuwait is one of the world’s top exporters of oil, with over 2.6 million barrels per day exported in 2007. The economy of the country is heavily dependent on oil export revenues, which account for roughly 90% of total export earnings. Around 10% of its oil revenues are channeled into the Future Generations Fund for the day when the country’s oil runs out.

Power and water projects are underway in Kuwait, in an attempt to address the growing needs of the country. One such example is the Shuaiba South Rehabilitation Plant, in which Honeywell was involved.

The plant is one of the largest planned power and water plants under contruction in the world

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March 2010

“Honeywell was able to provide a complete site survey and reveiwed the control logic of the plant” Byun Soon Sub, engineer, Doosan.

today. The plant turned to Doosan Hydro Technology to help at plant start up and commissioning. Having worked with Honeywell before, Doosan investigated the equipment and challenges that Shuaiba would have to face at plant start up. The largest issue was the existing control system in use at the existing power plant but any changes had to be approved PQ by the Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW).

The Shuaiba South Rehabilitation project in Kuwait is one of the largest planned power and water plants in the world today, capable of producing 36 Million Imperial Gallons per Day (MIGD) – enough to meet the daily water needs of 500,000 people. The project is upgrading an obsolete MSF-type desalination plant to extend equipment life by 10 additional years and expand plant capacity by 20%. This is the largest rehabilitation order for the entire Middle East region.

Shuaiba turned to Doosan Hydro Technology to help commis-

sion the plant and provide the right mix of technology to extend the life the plant. Doosan Hydro Technology is the US-based subsidiary of Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, which works in infrastructure services for the public and private sectcors. The company provides total water solutions and

thanks to its parent company offers clients a single source for design, manufacturing of equipment, plant construction and commissioning and operation of water and wastewater treatment facilities.

The Kuwait-based plant had previously used the existing control system but was looking for a way to upgrade this out-dated technology and find something that was more price competitive,and included the post-support service that the plants needed.

Working with Doosan Hydro Technology, the project sought a next-generation process control system that would meet the challenges the company faced at

Kuwait is an oil rich country but faces problems with its power and water supply.

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KUWAIT FOCUS

plant start up and commissioning. Another variable was that any technology changes to the existing plants must first be approved by the Kuwait Ministry of Electricity and Water.

Doosan worked with Honeywell to put together a seamless migration solution and transitioned Shuaiba to Honeywell and its Experion PKS which provided the right combination of technology, experience and people’s skill sets to meet the company’s business needs.

“Honeywell was able to provide a complete site survey and reviewed the control logic at the plant and provided recommendations on people, process and technology,” says Byun Soon Sub, Engineer, Doosan.

The project was a Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) process project which is one of the most commonly

used desalination technologies along with Reverse Osmosis (RO) and Multi-Effect Desalination (MED). “With Honeywell’s professional and assertive support, price competitiveness and systematic process post-commissioning, we were certain we had found the right partner for the job,” continues Soon Sub. Honeywell’s Experion unifies assets, processes, and people to improve business agility. This proven, open, yet completely secure technology is built to scale and helps manage everything from optimised yield to reduced maintenance costs by up to 30 %.

Experion PKS combines the strengths of the Experion platform, Honeywell’s applications and services to help customers make better decisions and improve business performance.

“One of the reasons we selected Honeywell was the ease of migration from Shuaiba’s existing outdated controller system in place.

We needed the flexibility to integrate at our own pace and help our customer,” says Soon Sub. “The end result was a customer that was very satisfied with their return on investment,” he explains.

The Experion product demonstrated the flexibility and reliability of a proven control system that helped satisfy Shuaiba’s return on investment based on the opportunity cost.

“Honeywell’s professionalism and local support and services and positive attitude and support provided the solution we needed,” concludes Soon Sub.

QUICK KUWAIT FACTS •Oil Production (2008): 2.7 million barrels per day, of which 2.57 million was crude •Electricity Installed Capacity (2006): 10.855 gigawatts •Electricity Consumption (2006): 39.543 billion kilowatt hours •Proven Oil Reserves (January 1, 2009E): 104 billion barrels (includes half of Neutral Zone) •Total Energy Consumption (2006): 1.136 quadrillion Btus*, of which Oil (59%), Natural Gas (41%), Coal (0%), Nuclear (0%), Hydroelectricity (0%), Other Renewables (0%)

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Utilities Middle East 25

Under the Patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance

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SITE VISIT

The royal treatment Septech ppresents its Underground Trickling Bio-Filter System at Al Khawane Khawaneej Palace in the UAE

I

David Heffernan, CEO, Septech.

f you own a palace, chances are few are your problems p However, and far between. bet the most regal of for even th homeowners, the issue of effective sewage recycling can be a troubling one. Palaces Palace in the Middle East are usually huge buildings which are for the majority of the time unoccupied, and can be found in remote locations. location Palaces and huge hug residences in the Middle East are a not in a position where they can c connect to a main sewer netwo network, and to do so would be too expensive, given the expe rarity of their use. us Septech took on the problem with its UnderTrickling Bio-Filter ground Trick concept.

System concep

In the latest installation of this system, at Al Khawaneej Palace, the owners are enjoying a number of benefits. When compared to other systems which treat the same volumes of wastewater, the system consumes 50% less power than an extended aeration treatment process, an MBR plant or a traditional sequencing batch reactor processing plant.

“This whole system operates off a 1.5kw pump, so you don’t even need power, you can just put in a small solar panel and run off solar,” states David Heffernan, CEO of Septech.

The system itself is extremely simple, as Heffernan explains. ”Everything comes in by gravity,

The filtration system can be run off solar power, due to it not needing a great deal of power.

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Utilities Middle East 27

SITE VISIT

The majority of the equipment can be located underground.

The system requires little or no maintenance.

and there is no need for pumps pump stations cost more than this system. In a biological process, there is 300mg of bod biochemical oxygen demand, and to get a reduction of that you have anaerobic digestion. So if you are going to do this with this type of system, you will have a 20% reduction of your BOD.” The system can be installed incredibly quickly as there is no need for above ground site work for the erection of the tanks and treatment processes.

Installation can be completed in as little amount of time as two weeks.

The systems are said to be ideal for palaces in remote locations in the Middle East.

“We did CityCentre in Ajman and we did that job in 15 days. Our nearest competitor was about eight months to a year. We offer a turnkey solution, we come here, we excavate, these are pre engineered tanks, they are our own designs and one piece, so we cast them upside down, jack them up in moulds and spin them round so they are one piece. There is no infiltration of water either in or out,” reveals Heffernan.

The plant is also a hidden facility, meaning it can be installed in areas which need to remain aesthetically pleasing – a useful attri-

THE UTB SYSTEM: ADVANTAGES • Consumes less power • Can be run off solar power • No above site works required • Can cope with changes in population • Recycles activated sludge within its own process • Final product ideal for irrigation and watering process

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March 2010

“There is no pre-treatment, we need the sewage in there and we are recycling it back through the system ” David Heffernan, CEO, Septech.

bute in a palace. Maintenance for the system is minimal, as Heffernan describes.

“There is no mechanical process, we have two pumps; a duty and stand by and they are cyclic changeovers so you don’t have motors that burn out. So if something goes wrong with the system, you can fix it and the system won’t stop,” comments Heffernan.

“You have the fixed film, the biomass grows on the fixed film and that is what absorbs the pollutants out of the wastewater. It grows on it so the older the system gets, the better the system works.

With fixed film it is a much better

process, you don’t have to worry about fluctuation, if you had a party for 1000 people it would still work,” Heffernan adds.

A sudden spike in the amount of people using a sewage filtration system can present challenges to most products. A conventional system which is designed for everyday traffic will struggle to operate when the usage becomes significantly higher. These sudden increases can result in untreated effluent being discharged from the plant. In the underground trickling bio-filter system, the activated sludge is recycled within its process, keeping the system in a

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SITE VISIT

ready state for optimal processing during both peaks and troughs in usage.

“This house has no flow, if it was any other system it would fail.

Even if there is zero flow, this will always work. Nearly every ruler in the Western regions and Abu Dhabi have these installed in their palaces. Studies have been done on these and what they have realised is they have minimum fuss, you don’t need any specialised engineering people and we can train people to use it, if they don’t want our people to do it,” explains Heffernan.

Heffernan also believes there is little to be gained from hooking up a building as remote as the Al Khawaneej Palace up to a central treatment plant.

“It costs so much less for this than it does to put in a network.

There is no point in pumping all the water to a central treatment plant just to redistribute it back to the gardens and common areas.

So in any area where it is not next to a main network, you would be mad not to put in a small decentralised system. And we have clients in the UAE who have put them in for 48 villas and things like that and they just gravity feed to it. So you get rid of the mechanical functions and eliminate the wear and tear issues,” he affirms.

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The final product which is obtained from the system is ideal for watering and irrigation purposes. The process of the system includes post-treatment chlorination for the safe storage and re-use of the clear effluent in greening projects.

“In the UAE, the water standards are probably one of the more stringent in the world, which a lot of people don’t seem to realise. In Europe its 20:30 BOD in suspended solids, here it’s below 10:10. For irrigating purposes, which this is for, this is more than sufficient, it’s actually too much,” opines Heffernan.

The system seems to have few flaws, and in a building such as a remotely located palace, it is a perfect match. Although it is not suitable for all uses, and Septech doesn’t claim it is, it seems this plant is an extremely well suited horse, for what must be a highly profitable course.

“Why would anyone look at using a more expensive solution if you had the available area? There is no pre-treatment, we need the sewage in there and we are recycling it back through the system.

“Having no noise, below ground, you have no issues and we are seeing a growing trend, every developer wants to put this in, concludes Heffernan.

The system produces no noise and possibly more crucially, no smell.

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Utilities Middle East 29

INTERVIEW

Power player Sylvain Hijazi, Alstom country president, Gulf Region, talks to Utilities Middle East about the company’s future plans, new technologies in the sector and the renewable energy question Roughly what percentage of Alstom’s business is in the Middle East currently?

For the Alstom Group as a whole, for the year ended 31 March 2009, the Middle East and Africa accounted for 25% of received orders, and 13% of sales were destined for that region.

And for the first nine months of 2009/10, sales to the Middle East and Africa amounted to some 19% of our global sales.

How do you see this changing in the future?

The Middle East will continue to be an important market for Alstom. Alstom’s product offering is well adapted to the needs of the region as demonstrated with the Fujairah 2000MW power and desalination plant using the GT26 gas turbines, the Sohar Aluminium power plant using our GT13E2 gas turbines, which are well suited to the needs of the aluminium industry and the 5.6GW Shoaiba oil fired steam plant in Saudi Arabia built using our plant integrator solution.

How is Alstom adapting to the changing face of the sector?

I believe we must find ways to kick-start new growth momentum that can factor in the pressures on the planet as a whole. The fact is Alstom is actively working in the various types of infrastructure that are at the very centre of the debate on economic growth. This means we must work out new ground

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rules. We are working on this and it’s not something that is going to happen overnight.

Sylvain Hijazi, Alstom country president, Gulf region.

What lessons do you believe have been learnt during the economic crisis? How did it af fect your sector?

Alstom as a whole has seen that our customers are reluctant to put in major orders. We have a stream of small- and medium-sized orders, but with respect to large projects, customers are waiting to see if the economy is really getting back on its feet.

How big a part do you believe renewable energies have to play in the future?

Technology mix has a significant role to play in the mitigation of CO2 emissions from power generation. No single form of power generation will address both the secure supply of reliable and affordable energy, and the rapid transformation to a low carbon system of energy supply.

Furthermore, international figures show that mix evolution can strongly contribute to reducing emissions by 2030, even with a bigger energy production.

March 2010

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Utilities Middle East 31

INTERVIEW

Alstom has no single preferred technology: each fuel category has its pros and cons.

With the most comprehensive and balanced portfolio of generation equipment in the market, including the removal of traditional pollutants, we offer the best technology mix so that each plant operator can choose a clean and balanced portfolio that takes into account environmental regulations. This is for all plants (whether new or existing), all energy sources, and all emissions.

What are your hopes for the next 18 months?

My hopes for the next 18 months are that Alstom is able to increase its market share on all of its axis

“New technologies, such as single crystal blading alloys, improve the turbine’s lifetime and reduce the cost” Sylvain Hijazi, country president, Gulf region, Alstom.

– new power generation projects, fume treatment for the industrial market, in particular aluminium smelters and in the service market for both the power and industrial markets.

What new technology is the firm employing?

Let’s take the four main fuels - natural gas, coal, water and nuclear -

used for power generation. For gas, we’ve moved to an incremental improvement strategy, making small changes to the existing GT26/GT13 gas turbines. New technologies, such as single crystal blading alloys, improve the turbine’s lifetime and reduce the cost, while the flow coming through the compressor has been increased.

To reduce outages, we optimise

simulation methods of the lifetime operation of the plant. Fuel flexibility and plant integration are other important issues.

For coal, the efficiency of a coalfired plant is driven by the steam conditions: the highest the temperature and the pressure, the better conditions. With machines operating at 620°C, we’ve the most competitive steam turbine in the market place. Further steps include design of larger plants and materials development (advanced steels, nickel-based alloys) to raise temperature up to 700-750°C and bring efficiency up to 50%.

Hydro turbines and generators are already very efficient. There is a growing demand for pump storage capacity for peak power gen-

CASE STUDY: FUJAIRAH 2 Alstom installed its product platform ALSPA to control and manage power plant assets at a Fujairah based power and desalination plant.

ALSPA architectures have been successfully rolled out on several large sites in the Middle East. One of the largest installations, and most advanced projects, is located in Fujairah for the new desalinisation plant. The control system ensures optimal coordination of the traditional power plant island consisting of a combined heat and power cycle feeding a desalinisation unit.

The ALSPA system controls all power plant process units and offers a single window harmonised environment across all plant process items. The system controls both the power plant and the desalination plant, allowing consistent operation and control through the same

32 Utilities Middle East

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March 2010

ALSPA control philosophy.

The project demonstrates the scalability of the architecture to power and other processes, positioning the architecture as a leading component of the deployments of future eco cities combining all related grids – electricity, heat, water and CO2 – into a consistent control and optimisation architecture.

The contract was signed with the project development consortium comprising International Power Plc and Marubeni Corp - who are implementing the project in partnership with the government-owned major utility Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA) who initiated the project. A consortium comprising Alstom and Sidem, with Alstom supplying the power plant and Sidem the desalination plant.

Under the contract, Alstom is providing all engineering,

Fujairah 2, where Alstom is providing EPC services.

procurement and construction services for the turnkey supply of the 2000 MW combined-cycle power plant based on the GT26 gas turbine, including the in-house supply of all main equipment, which comprises five GT26 gas turbines, five heat recovery steam generators (HRSG),

three steam turbines, eight turbogenerators and associated control systems. Sidem is supplying the 130 million imperial gallons per day hybrid desalination plant, which is based on and built with multi-effect distillation as well as reverse osmosis technologies.

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INTERVIEW

technologies from the 1990s, and in 2009 we launched the latest version of the ALSPA platform, the ALSPA Series 6 in Europe, Asia and US. First commercial successes have been really quick with over 15 power plants being equipped with this new platform.

The Fujairah 2 power plant in the UAE.

eration and grid balancing services as an increasing proportion of renewable energies are connected to the grids. In nuclear, we are extending the power range to produce 1000MW and 1750MW

turbines for both 50 and 60 Hz. At the heart of our plant integrator and smart energy capabilities is our energy management business, which has strong expertise in control applications across all

fuels, as well as a comprehensive product platform – named ALSPA – to control and manage power plant assets individually as well as a portfolio of power plants. Alstom has been present in these digital

TRANSFORMER PROTECTOR

The only solution against transformer explosions

Can the environmental impact be reduced?

The biggest technological challenge right now is in CO2 capture. The target set in Europe for CO2 reduction is 50% to 60% by 2050. Alstom’s strategy for clean power is based around providing CO2 mitigation technologies for both new and, more importantly, existing plants. Consequently, we are working on five technologies, based on the three principles to capture CO2 (post-combustion, oxyfiring, pre-combustion).

PREVENT TRANSFORMER EXPLOSION AND FIRE During a transformer short circuit, the TRANSFORMER PROTECTOR (TP) is activated within milliseconds by the first dynamic pressure peak of the shock wave, avoiding transformer explosions before static pressure increases.

The TRANSFORMER PROTECTOR: t Compensates several thousand times the investment t Sharply reduces plant outages and associated high costs t Avoids oil fire to transformer and surrounding equipment t Renders impossible environmental pollution by containing the oil t Allows transformer repair after internal fault t Eliminates risk to human life

TRANSFORMER PROTECTOR Works with all oil-filled transformers up to 1,000 MVA and more

www.sergi-france.com sergi@sergi-france.com Tel: +33 (0) 1.39.22.48.40

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March 2010

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Utilities Middle East 33

Not just a long company history with continuous control and improvement of quality but also innovative engineering and a customer-oriented attitude.

With more than 40 years’ expertise, targeted product development, and flexibility in production and after-sales, we respond to the specific demands of our customers.

Vexve Water Metering – Make the Difference

« Remote Read « Hitech « Apartment-Based Water Metering System

Vexve Water Metering’s green goal is to reduce water consumption. The Vexve Water Metering System provides valuable information on our water consumption habits.

Vexve Group Pajakatu 11 FI-38200 Sastamala Finland Tel +358 10 734 0800 Fax +358 10 734 0839 vexve@vexve.fi www.vexve.fi

In this system, one of the most modern and efficient flat-based metering systems, use of the Internet and the building’s power network ensures reliable data transfer. The compact water meter operates smoothly in combination with the building’s central- and apartment units. Data can be read easily when residents see their consumption to the nearest litre.

Make Your Footprint a Green One – Vexve Water Metering

PROJECTS

UTILITIES PROJECT TRACKER Information is supplied by Ventures Middle East. Tel: +971 2 622 2455. URL: www.ventures-uk.com MIDDLE EAST Project Title

Client

Consultant

Main Contractor

Value / Project Status Value Range (US$. Mn)

Project Type

SAUDI

9023/9001 Underground Cables

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Al Fanar Contracting

46

project under construction

Power Transmission

380kV Transmission Line North of Riyadh

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

KEC International / Al Sharif Group for Contracting & Development Trading

64

project under construction

Power Transmission

Huta-Hegerfeld & HutaMarine Limited Company

53

project under construction

Desalination Plant

Doosan Heavy Industries & Const. Company / Saudi Berkefeld Filter (Witco)

245

project under construction

Desalination Plant

Desalination Plant & Drinking Emaar Economic City,Saudi Water Infrastructure Kuljian Engineering Corporation

Desalination Plant in Jeddah - Phase 3

Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC)

115kV Underground Cables in Madina 2nd Industrial City

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Siemens

35

project under construction

Power Transmission

132/13.8 kV 8122-Substation in Al Morooj

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Al-Osais Group

50

project under construction

Substation

10J Substation & 101 Satellite Substation in Yanbu

Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu (RCJY)

Siemens

150

project under construction

Substation

Princess Noura Bin Abdulrahman University - High Voltage Substation

Ministry of Higher Education / Ministry of Finance

ABB Contracting Co. / Al Fanar Contracting

167

project under construction

Substation

Yanbu IWPP

The Power & Water Utilities Company for Jubail & Yanbu (Marafiq)/Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC)

Mohammed A.Turki Mott MacDonald

Not Appointed

4000

project under design

Power and Desalination Plant

Qsai Dam at Jizan

Ministry of Water and Electricity,Saudi Arabia

Zuhair Fayez & Partners

Bin Jarallah Establishment for Trading & General Contracting (Bin Jarallah Group)

40

project under construction

Dam

380/110/13.8-kV Substation Expansion in Al Aziziyah Area

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Siemens, Saudi

20

project under construction

Substation

Power Plant Expansion Duba

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Najm Al Jazirah for Trading 120 Contracting & Agriculture Co.

project under construction

Power Plant

King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) - Power Grid Package

Emaar Middle East Properties

Siemens

400

project under construction

Substation

Not Appointed

2500

project under design

Power & Desalination Plant

Bin Jarallah Establishment for Trading & General Contracting (Bin Jarallah Group)

16

project under construction

Dam

ABB Contracting Co., Saudi Arabia

120

project under construction

Substation

300

EPC Bid

Power Plant

48

project under construction

Substation

Saudi Arabian Mining ComPower and Water Plant in Ras pany (Maaden) / Rio Tinto Al Zour Alcan New Dam in Abha

Ministry of Water and Electricity

Substations 9024 and 8183/8184

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Interim Power Plant at Yanbu Rabigh IPP - 380-KV Substation www.utilities-me.com

The Power & Water Utilities Company for Jubail & Yanbu (Marafiq) Saudi Electricity Company (SEC); ACWA Power International; Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco);

Zuhair Fayez & Partners

ABB Contracting Co., Saudi Arabia

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Utilities Middle East 35

PROJECTS Uqair Power Plant

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Not Appointed

1500

project in concept stage

Power Plant

380 Substation at Al Dhahiyah - Stage2

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Al Toukhi Company for Industry & Trading

70

project under construction

Substation

PP11 Power Plant in Riyadh

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Not Appointed

2133

EPC Bid

Power Plant

Karan Gas Field Exploration - Utilities and Co-generation Package

Saudi Aramco

Petrofac, Saudi

500

project under construction

Co-generation Plant

Qurayyah - 2 Simple Cycle Power Plant

Saudi Electricity Company (SEC)

Arabian Bemco Contracting, Saudi Arabia; Doosan Heavy 1900 Industries & Const. Company, Saudi Arabia;

project under construction

Power Plant

Not Appointed

3000

EPC Bid

Not Appointed

1800

EPC Bid

Alstom Power / Sidem

3,000

project under construction

Metito Abu Dhabi LLC

21

Aqua Engineering, Techton Engineering & Construction

122

Not Appointed

Foster Wheeler, Saudi Arabia

UAE

project under construction project under construction

Power and Desalination Plant Water Distribution Power and Desalination Plant Water Treatment Desalination Plant

500

EPC Bid

Power Plant

Not Appointed

10

EPC Bid

Pumping Station

Korean Electric Power Company / Hyundai Engineering & Construction Company/ Samsung C & T Corporation/ Doosan Heavy Industries

41000

project under construction

Power Plant

Econ Contracting LLC

25

Tecton Engineering & Construction; Aqua Engineering;

200

project under construction project under construction

Power Transmission Desalination Plant

National Contracting Company (NCC), Kuwait

11

project under construction

Power Transmission

Not Appointed

30

EPC Bid

Substation

Not Appointed

500

EPC Bid

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Kuwait

320

project under construction

Parsons Ministry of Electricity & Water Brinckerhoff (MEW), Kuwait International, Kuwait

Not Appointed

120

EPC Bid

Desalination Plant

Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (Kahramaa)

Not Appointed

1000

Feasibility Study

Power Plant

Hassyan Complex - Station P - Phase 1 (P1)

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA)

Hassyan Sea-Water Cooling System

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA)

Fujairah 2 (F2) IWPP

ADWEA/ Marubeni Corporation/ International Power

Water Treatment Plant - Das Island Desalination Plant near Hamriyah Free Zone General Utility Plant Expansion at Ruwais Upgrade of Irrigation Networks and Pumping Stations

Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Company (Adma-Opco) Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA) Abu Dhabi Oil Refinery Company (Takreer) Department of Municipalities & Agriculture-Abu Dhabi

Nuclear Power Plant in Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority / Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation

Installation of 11kV Cables in Dubai Two Desalination Plants in Ajman

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) Federal Electricity & Water Authority (FEWA)

Mott MacDonald, Dubai

Fichtner

KUWAIT

11kV Overhead Transmission Line for Subiya Road New Substations in Kuwait Water Storage Tanks in West Funaitees Shuwaikh Desalination Plant Al Zour Desalination Plant Phase 2

Ministry of Electricity & Water (MEW), Kuwait Ministry of Electricity & Water (MEW), Kuwait Ministry of Electricity & Water (MEW), Kuwait Ministry of Energy (Electricity & Water)

Water Distribution Desalination Plant

QATAR

Solar Power Plant

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March 2010

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TENDERS

Tender activity To add a tender to our listing, email details to lutfi.qaraman@itp.com Visit constructionweekonline.com for the latest tender information

UME provides free access to the latest publicly available tender listings from across GCC countries. The tenders included are aggregated from a wide variety of public and private sector sources from across the region. Where possible, tenders include the issuer, name and category of the tender; opening and closing dates; narratives; fees, bonds and contacts

SINGLE CORE COPPER CABLE 0.6/1-KV Issuer: Electricity and Water Authority Tender no: 001/2010/5310 Title: Single Core Copper Cable 0.6/1-kV Description: The scope of work includes purchasing single core copper cable 0.6/1-kV, 70sqmm (Qty 8000m) & PVC insulated copper wire 70sqmm (Qty 200m), 35sqmm 500m.

Bond: Applicable Tender fee: 15.00 BHD Closes: Feb 10, 2010 Contact: Purchasing & Supply Directorate CONSTRUCTION OF NEW 2X2 M.V.A IBRA-1 SUBSTATION AT IBRA Issuer: Mazoon Electricity Company SAOC Tender no: 426/2009 Title: Construction of New 2x2 M.V.A Ibra-1 Substation at Ibra Description: The scope of work includes construction of new 2x2 M.V.A Ibra-1 Substation at Ibra.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 400.00 OMR Closes: Feb 15, 2010 Contact: www.tenderboard.gov.om UPGRADING OF BOUSHER GRID STATION Issuer: Oman Electricity Transmission Company Tender no: 431/2009 Title: Upgrading of Bousher Grid Station Description: The scope of work includes upgrading of Bousher Grid Station in Oman.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 1500.00 OMR Closes: Feb 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om ADDITIONAL 125-M.V.A TRANSFORMER AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENTS IN BARKA Issuer: Oman Electricity Transmission Company Tender no: 430/2009 Title: Additional 125-M.V.A Transformer and Associated Equipments in Barka Description: The scope of work includes installation of additional 125-M.V.A transformer and associated equipments at Barka Main Grid Substation.

Bond: Applicable

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March 2010

Tender fee: 367.00 OMR Closes: Feb 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om ADDITIONAL 125-M.V.A TRANSFORMER AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENTS IN WADI KABIR Issuer: Oman Electricity Transmission Company Tender no: 429/2009 Title: Additional 125-M.V.A Transformer and Associated Equipments in Wadi Kabir Description: The scope of work includes installation of additional 125-M.V.A transformer and associated equipments at Wadi Kabir Grid Substation.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 392.00 OMR Closes: Feb 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om ADDITIONAL 125-M.V.A TRANSFORMER AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENTS IN MAWALLEH Issuer: Oman Electricity Transmission Company Tender no: 428/2009 Title: Additional 125-M.V.A Transformer and Associated Equipments in Mawalleh Description: The scope of work includes installation of additional 125-M.V.A transformer and associated equipments at Mawalleh Grid Substation.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 372.00 OMR Closes: Feb 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om ADDITIONAL 125-M.V.A TRANSFORMER AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENTS IN MADINAT QABOOS Issuer: Oman Electricity Transmission Company Tender no: 427/2009 Title: Additional 125-M.V.A Transformer and Associated Equipments in Madinat Qaboos Description: The scope of work includes installation of additional 125-M.V.A transformer and associated equipments at Madinat Qaboos Grid Substation.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 326.00 OMR Closes: Feb 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om

INSPECTION & OVERHAULING OF 132-KV SF6 GAS INSULATED SWITCHGEARS Issuer: Saline Water Conversion Corporation Tender no: SQ/RE/347 Title: Inspection & Overhauling of 132-kV SF6 Gas Insulated Switchgears Description: The scope of work includes detailed inspection & overhauling of 132-kV SF6 gas insulated switchgears, accessories & air compressor at SWCC Shuqaiq plant.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 500.00 SAR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.swcc.gov.sa UPGRADING OF EXISTING AL-HAMRA SUBSTATION AT HAMARA IN DAKHILIYA REGION Issuer: Mazoon Electricity Company SAOC Tender no: 39/2010 Title: Upgrading of Existing Al-Hamra Substation at Hamara in Dakhiliya Region Description: The scope of work includes upgrading of existing Al-Hamra substation at Hamara in Dakhiliya Region.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 429.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om CONSTRUCTION OF PRIMARY SUBSTATION FOR POWER SUPPLY TO ADAM AIRPORT AT DAKHILYA REGION Issuer: : Mazoon Electricity Company SAOC Tender no: 38/2010 Title: Construction of Primary Substation for Power Supply to Adam Airport at Dakhilya Region Description: The scope of work includes construction of primary substation for power supply to Adam Airport at Dakhilya Region.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 373.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om

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TENDERS

EXTENSION OF 33-KV LINE AND CONSTRUCTION OF PRIMARY SUBSTATION Issuer: Mazoon Electricity Company SAOC Tender no: : 37/2010 Title: Extension of 33-kV Line and Construction of Primary Substation Description: The scope of work includes extension of 33-kv line and construction of primary substation for power supply to Ras Al-Hadd airport at Sharqiya region.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 943.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 22, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om A/C SYSTEM REPLACEMENT FOR OFFICE OF MINISTRY OF DEFENCE Issuer: Central Tenders Committee Tender no: 8062709 Title: A/C System Replacement for Office of Ministry of Defence Description: The scope of work includes A/C System Replacement for Office of Minister of Defence Bond: Applicable Tender fee: 60.00 KWD ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 23, 2010 Contact: Central Tenders Committee - Ministry of Defence WATER DESALINATION PLANT IN SOHAR INDUSTRIAL PORT Issuer: Majis Industrial Services S.A.O.C Tender no: 22/2010 Title: Water Desalination Plant in Sohar Industrial Port Description: The scope of work includes construction of water desalination plant in Sohar Industrial Port.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 1500.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 29, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om REVAMPING OF PROTECTION SYSTEM AT 132KV AND 220-KV GRID STATION IN MUSCAT GOVERNORATE Issuer: Oman Electricity Transmission Company Tender no: 23/2010 Title: Revamping of Protection System at 132-kV and 220-kV Grid Station in Muscat Governorate Description: The scope of work includes revamping of protection system at 132-kv and 220-kv grid station in Muscat governorate.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 448.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 29, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM TO RESORT HOTEL & OTHER CONSUMERS AT MASIRAH Issuer: Public Authority for Electricity and Water Tender no: 50/2010 www.utilities-me.com

KEY CONTRACT

WATER BUMPS REFURBISHMENT - PHASE 7 The scope of work includes refurbishment of several water bumps. The Contractor’s attention is directed in particular to QCS 2007 Section 1 Part 11 and Project Specification Part 2 Section 1 Part 11 in respect of providing site facilities for the use of the Engineer. The closing date for the tender is April 6th and tender fee is 4000QAR. Contact: Contracts Dept. - Public Works Authority, Fax: 00974-4950777.

Title: Water Supply System to Resort Hotel & Other Consumers at Masirah Description: The scope of work includes construction of water supply system to resort hotel & other consumers at Masirah which is located in the country of Oman.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 750.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Mar 29, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om CONSTRUCTION OF DAMD WATER TREATMENT PLANT NEAR TO DAMD DAM Issuer: Ministry of Water & Electricity Tender no: 16/1431/1432 Title: Construction of Damd Water Treatment Plant near to Damd Dam Description: The scope of work includes construction of Damd Water Treatment Plant near to Damd Dam in Saudi Arabia.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 3000.00 SAR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Apr 4, 2010 Contact: http://app.mowe.gov.sa ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION WORKS IN KHASAB AT MUSANDAM GOVERNORATE Issuer: Rural Areas Eletricity Compant S.A.O.C Tender no: 53/2010 Title: Electrical Distribution Works in Khasab at Musandam Governorate Description: The scope of work includes electrical distribution works (11k.v network extensions) to feed

power supply to Khasab at Musandam governorate, which is based in Oman.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 315.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Apr 5, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om NEW 220-KV SOHAR POWER GRID STATION Issuer: Oman Electricity Transmission Company Tender no: 52/2010 Title: New 220-kV Sohar Power Grid Station Description: The scope of work includes the construction of a new 220-kV Sohar power grid station and installation of the required overhead lines at the station, which is based in Oman.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 1500.00 OMR ( Currency converter ) Closes: Apr 5, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om DESALINATION PLANT WADI MARIR IN AL SHARQIYAH REGION Issuer: Public Authority for Electricity and Water Tender no: 49/2010 Title: Desalination Plant Wadi Marir in Al Sharqiyah Region Description: The scope of work includes construction of the desalination plant Wadi Marir found in the Al Sharqiyah Region, which is located in Oman.

Bond: N/A Tender fee: 200.00 OMR (Currency converter) Closes: Apr 5, 2010 Contact: http://www.tenderboard.gov.om

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Utilities Middle East 39

QUICK Q&A

PEOPLE METER Breaking through Open Systems International director Abed Halimah on how his firm is approaching the Middle East region

Could you describe your company?

Our name is Open Systems International (OSI) and we are a partner of Al Mostajed Technologies, a part of the Global Energy group of companies.

We provide automation solutions to the utilities industry including electric utilities, oil and gas, water and transportation. We basically provide SCADA systems, data acquisition systems, energy management systems and distribution management systems. Our business covers all types of utilities from transmission to generation to distribution.

We are located in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States.

That is where our headquarters are. We have offices around the world and we have several projects outside of the United States.

Most of our business is in North America but we have started to branch out internationally. We are very active in India, China, we have a few projects in Europe and we are now here in Dubai, looking to expand into the Middle East region.

The firm was founded in the early 1990s in an attempt to create real time automation solutions based on latest IT solutions, in the US and has grown from there.

40 Utilities Middle East

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March 2010

What percentage of your business is in the Middle East?

Right now I would say less than 10% but we are shooting for this to be 20-25% pretty soon.

Al Mostajed and OSI in a joint venture have just signed a contract with FEWA to replace their SCADA energy management and

the GCC and other places in the Middle East. The local presence and value added by our partners Al Mostajed will help us develop and deliver competitive solutions.

What challenges are you facing in the Middle East?

In the whole industry, this is a

“We are the only vendor in this area, in this market that is providing standard products, in the sense that instead of building customised systems for every utility we actually build one standard product for every utility.”

distribution management systems in the northern Emirates of the UAE so we are confident that this is the first step towards that.

Are you looking to expand further into the Middle East region?

We actually started with a partnership with Global Energy and Al Mostajed Technologies and we are part of the Global Energy office in Jebel Ali. So that will be our starting point for projects in the UAE,

sector that has been very conservative and reluctant to change.

These automation systems in the past have been very complex systems that are made by huge companies that are not really in line with standard software mentality.

We are the only vendor in this area in this market that is providing standard products, in the sense that instead of building customised systems for every utility we actually build one standard product for every utility. So

it becomes more in line with the IT industry where you can get upgrades every year, so a system never has to be replaced. So the main challenge is getting people to understand that philosophy.

What are your hopes for the next 12 months?

We hope to complete the FEWA project and make it a success for us and FEWA, make it a showcase for is. And basically start gaining market share very quickly, starting with the United Arab Emirates and then the rest of the GCC countries.

The 24/7 service provided locally from our Jebel Ali base would be an extremely important element which will be considered by the utilities in deciding future projects. We intend to have engineering, development, training, FAT etc. all based out of our United Arab Emirates facility based in Jebel Ali. What do you think of the Middle East Electricity show?

We are very excited, this is the first time we have come to the show, that coupled with the FEWA contract has given us a good start.

This is our first show in the Middle East and hopefully we will be back here for many more shows. www.utilities-me.com

CMC 353 and CMControl:

Two reasons for protection engineers to get excited!

Over the last 20 years, innovations from OMICRON have set new standards in protection testing – and, with its two new products, OMICRON continues to lead the field:

The CMC 353 meets a wide variety of challenges in protection engineering – from the testing of electromechanical relays to the latest IEC 61850 IEDs.

OMICRON’s latest protection test set, the CMC 353, provides the perfect combination of portability and power with its compact design, light weight (12.9 kg) and powerful current sources (3 x 32 A / 430 VA).

OMICRON’s Test Universe software enables CMC test sets to provide the ultimate in automated protection testing. Now, for speedy manual tests, the new CMControl unit offers a convenient and easy to use alternative:

The CMControl provides quick verification of test objects, utilizing an intuitive touch screen user interface and a control wheel.

In addition to its use as a front panel control unit, its flexibility also allows it to be used as a hand-held device or it can be magnetically attached to a protection cubicle for convenient eye-level operation.

Even existing CMC devices can easily be upgraded.

Exciting news indeed.

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