Egypt’s Orascom Construction has announced that its consortium with UAE-based Metito Group and Saudi-based leading private water desalination company MOWAH has signed a Sewage Treatment Agreement (STA) with the Water and Electricity Company (WEC) for setting up KSA’s first independent sewage treatment plant project (ISTP), Invest-Gate reports.

The plant, which has a designed capacity of 350,000 cubic meters per day and an initial capacity of 200,000 cubic meters per day, will be tendered to investors under a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) model and will serve the western region of Dammam, Orascom said in an official statement on January 22.

Orascom will take the lead on the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) of the project, the company added.

Commenting on the deal, Orascom’s CEO Osama Bishai said, “This project is a continuation of our efforts to build a solid portfolio of water-related construction projects similar to what we have achieved in power generation.”

Minister of Environment, Water, and Agriculture and Chairman of WEC Abdulrahman Al Fadley has signed the STA with Metito Group Chairman and CEO Mutaz Ghandour for the development of the ISTP, said a statement from Saudi Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture.

The contract is in line with the kingdom’s Vision 2030 and the wider initiatives approved by the Saudi Cabinet of Ministers to further promote the private sector’s participation in economic development initiatives.

Al Fadley pointed out that the project aims to upgrade services, make them more sustainable, and increase capital spending efficiency by making the best use of the private sector’s experience in the environment, water, and agricultural sectors.