Alstom wins $972 million Saudi power plant contract

Alstom, a global leader in power generation equipment and service, has won a 750 million euros ($972 million) contract to supply equipment for the Yanbu 3 power and desalination plant located on the Red Sea coast in the western part of Saudi Arabia.
 
The contract was awarded by Al-Toukhi Company for Industry, Trading & Contracting, which is leading the consortium in charge of the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the HFO-fired steam power plant.
 
This will be one of the country’s first supercritical power plants to run on heavy fuel oil. This investment is part of Saudi Arabia’s objective to expand its power generation base while minimizing impact on the environment.
 
The new plant is being developed for the Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC), one of the leading power and water utilities in the region, said the company in a statement.  
 
Alstom’s part in the contract includes the basic engineering of the power block, advisory services during detailed engineering and procurement, supervision services during construction and commissioning and delivery of main equipment for 5 x 620 MW units including the steam turbines and generators, the HFO-fired(2) supercritical boilers, electrostatic precipitators and the flue gas desulphurization system.
 
The plant is due to enter commercial operation in 2016, the statement added.
 
The project is of great significance for SWCC and for Saudi Arabia in general. The plant will produce 3100 MW power to meet the increasing electricity demands as it will supply sweet water and feed the grid in the western part of the country where the cities of Jeddah, Yanbu and Makkah and Madinah are located.
 
The balance power and extracted steam will be fed into the associated new Yanbu 550’000 m3/d desalination plant which will be a key supplier of water to the city of Madinah.
 
“The Yanbu 3 project will add 2700 MW of cleaner high-efficiency power to the Saudi grid and steam to a new desalination plant thanks to our market-leading supercritical technology combined with Alstom’s ability to integrate equipment into complete and complex power projects,” said Andreas Lusch, senior VP for Alstom’s steam business.
 
Alstom has equipped over 20 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s installed power generation base. Its steam turbine technology also features in Shoaiba – the region’s biggest power plant and aptly called the ‘Giant of the Middle East’. Its environmental control systems in operation at projects like Rabigh IPP, Shoaiba 3 and Yanbu 2 are enabling the country to reduce power plant emissions.
 
Alstom is the world leader in supercritical and ultrasupercritical steam power plant technology and has already supplied or has under construction over 36 GW capacity globally including projects in South Africa, Germany, Poland, Malaysia and China.
SG
7 April