New market study, "Qatar Water Report Q4 2010", has been published

Oct. 14, 2010 - PRLog -- Qatar is a small country in terms of population, but it is one of the world's largest water consumers on a per capita basis. More than half of the country's water goes to the agricultural sector, but increasing demand is coming from the country's growing urban population.

It is a country with limited and declining groundwater resources, and the state is therefore investing heavily in desalination plants. It has one of the longest-standing desalination programmes in the Middle East and so has garnered much experience in the sector.

As the Gulf economies start to revive, Qatar is in a stronger position than most to deliver on its ambitious plans to raise water production rates, since its economy was least affected by the credit downturn. Doha has a highly credible record at delivering projects on schedule, and we are confident that it will increase its water production by 9% over the next four years to 44,795mn gallons/year.

Much of the expansion in Qatar's desalination programme is being achieved through independent water and power projects (IWPPs). The largest of these is the Ras Girtas project currently under construction in the Ras Laffan industrial complex. A further IWPP is said to be under consideration, and the country is also widening its technological horizons, with a pilot reverse osmosis desalination plant due to be built and solar-powered desalination plants under consideration.

Qatar has been open to foreign investment for several years and is regarded as a relatively safe investment destination, with major international companies currently active in the sector. The US$3.9bn Ras Girtas project managed to achieve its funding goals in mid-2008, despite the already rocky state of international capital markets, indicating investor confidence. The global economic downturn has hindered the pace of development since then to some extent, but signs of improvement in the regional investment climate will benefit the sector.

Qatar will need to build on this reputation to attract more funding and technical know-how, as it will need to expand its water supply, wastewater treatment and power capacity over the next five years if output is to keep ahead of growing demand. Water demand in the summer months of 2009 rose 7% compared with the previous year.

The Qatar Electricity and Water Company (QEWC) is the state's main investment vehicle in the water and power sectors. The government holds a 43% stake in the company, with the rest held by private and public investors. It says its profits and revenues have been on the rise, as income from joint ventures (JVs) feed through. QEWC is involved in many of the large projects taking place in the country and so is a key partner for other investors. It now owns and manages almost 1mn m3 per day (m3/d) of water capacity and around 3 gigawatts (GW) of power output. It also has interests in IWPPs, producing some 750,000 m3/d of water and more than 6GW of power. When Ras Girtas becomes operational in 2011, the country will have around 1.4mn m3/d of desalinated water capacity, as well as power generating capacity of 9GW.

The Public Works Authority, Ashghal, manages the development of wastewater and drainage projects in the country, and is responsible for contracting firms to work on its growing slate of projects. Ashghal is considering outsourcing the operation and maintenance of some elements of its wastewater network - the first time it has done this.

In July 2010, Ashghal awarded Cowi, of Denmark, a US18mn contract for consultancy services in Doha sewerage systems. The firm will oversee the building of sewerage systems and house connections over a 7.7 m2 square area. The work will be completed by 2012.

The water sector is regulated by the Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa), which was established in 2000 as an independent corporation operating on a commercial basis. Kahramaa also owns projects and develops strategy for the sector. Kahramaa is also responsible for setting water tariffs, which have been heavily subsidised for decades. There has been some talk of making them more representative of costs, but little action has been taken on this front yet.

For more information or to purchase this report, go to:
-  http://www.fastmr.com/prod/87965_qatar_water_report_q4_20...

Report Table of Contents:

Executive Summary
SWOT Analysis
- Qatar Water Industry SWOT
- Qatar Political SWOT
- Qatar Economic SWOT
- Qatar Business Environment SWOT
Market Overview
Pricing Mechanisms and Regulatory Framework
Sectors
- IWPPs
- Desalination
- Wastewater
- Water Systems
- Table: Major Projects
Industry Forecast Scenario
- Table: Qatar Water Sector Data
Regional Overview: The Water Sector In The Gulf
Business Environment
- Rewards
- Risks
- Middle East Infrastructure Business Environment Ratings
- Table: Regional Infrastructure Business Environment Ratings
- Project Finance Ratings
- Project Finance Ratings: Outlook For Middle East
- Table: Design And Construction Rating
- Table: Commissioning And Operating Rating
- Table: Overall Project Finance Rating
Company Profiles
- Suez Environnement
- Qatar Electricity and Water Company (QEWC)
BMI Water Forecast Modelling
- How We Generate Our Industry Forecasts
- Sources
- Business Environment Ratings
- Ratings Overview
- Table: Infrastructure Business Environment Indicators
- Project Finance Ratings Methodology
- Table: Design And Construction Phase
- Table: Commissioning And Operating Phase - Commercial Construction
- Table: Commissioning And Operating Phase - Energy And Utilities
- Table: Commissioning And Operating Phase - Transport

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Fast Market Research is an online aggregator and distributor of market research and business information. We represent the world's top research publishers and analysts and provide quick and easy access to the best competitive intelligence available.