Leading Saudi developer, investor, and operator of power generation, water desalination and green hydrogen plants, ACWA Power has signed water purchase agreements for the Rabigh 4 Independent Water Plant (IWP), which will have a 600,000 cubic metre per day production capacity.

Leading a consortium that includes Haji Abdullah Alireza & Partners Company, a leading player in the management, operation and maintenance of sea water desalination plants, and Bahrain-based Almoayyed Contracting Group, ACWA Power was awarded the project by The Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC), which will be the sole buyer of services for the Rabigh 4 project, located on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia.

ACWA Power plant will service Makkah, Madinah regions
Approximately valued at $677mn (AED2.49bn), the reverse osmosis plant will service the Makkah and Madinah regions, where demand spikes are regular during the Ramadan and the annual Hajj season.

The agreements were signed by HE Abdulrahman Al-Fadhli, Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture with Chairman of the SWPC, and Mr. Mohammad Abunayyan, Chairman of ACWA Power, in the presence of Mr. Marco Arcelli, Chief Executive Officer of ACWA Power, and Mr. Raad Al-Saady, Managing Director and Vice Chairman of ACWA Power.

HE Abdulrahman Al-Fadli, said: “These agreements will achieve the goals for water production projects in partnership with the private sector that supply industries, communities, and people across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We expect that Rabigh 4 will directly serve pilgrims from around the world in the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah and serve households in the wider region. We hope that this project serves as a testament to this vital sector and shows how the private sector can improve the quality of services, realise investment efficiencies, and foster innovation—all of which are objectives of Vision 2030.”

Eng. Khalid bin Zuwaid Al-Quraishi, Chief Executive Officer of SWPC, said: “Rabigh 4 has been designed to use less electricity, lower operating costs, and support local content across both supply chain and employment. When this plant is operational in 2026, we will see the impact of reverse osmosis technology in action.”

ACWA Power currently operates Rabigh 3 IWP in the area with the same capacity as Rabigh 4. Last year, Rabigh 3 was recognised as the World’s Largest Reverse Osmosis Desalination plant by the Guinness World Records.

Source: Construction Week.