Saudi Arabia’s Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) has invited qualified firms to place their bids to acquire the majority stake in its Ras Al-Khair (RAK) facility.
“The winning bidder will own 60 percent of RAK Project Company and take over the management, operation and maintenance,” the firm said.
It revealed that at least seven companies and consortiums have already qualified to submit their bids.
The step comes in light of the corporation’s attempts to privatize the water sector and develop the production system on a commercial level to start offering it throughout the kingdom.
The project is the first SWCC production bundle to be privatized and overseen by the Supervisory Committee for Privatization in the Environment, Water and Agriculture sector, with the participation of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, the National Center for Privatization and the Saudi Water Partnerships Company.
The SWCC, which operates desalination plants and power stations in the Kingdom, has been preparing the launch of the remaining production bundles, which include Yanbu and Shuaiba desalination assets, as well as other construction plants.
The RAK power and desalination plant is the world’s largest with production of over 1,051 million cubic meters of desalinated water per day with 2,650 megawatts of base load power.
Last week, the SWCC and the Water Transmission and Technologies Co. (WTTCO) signed a cooperation agreement to outsource management services.
The deal will boost the efficiency and organization of the water sector, as well as develop the Kingdom’s economy by adding more than SAR60 billion ($16 billion) worth of investment opportunities in water transport and storage systems by involving the private sector in funding future projects.
