New Market Research Report: Bahrain Water Report Q2 2011

May 8, 2011 - PRLog -- Bahrain receives groundwater by lateral under-flow from the Dammam aquifer, which is part of an extensive regional system. Excessive extraction from this aquifer has led to supplies having an increased saline content because water is drawn from adjacent brackish and saline water sources.

More than half of the country's water is provided by the Hidd independent water and power plant (IWPP), with just 9% of supply for consumption provided by ground water in 2011. Desalinated water now accounts for more than 80% of Bahrain's water provision, a proportion that is likely to increase over time.

Desalinated water capacity has increased significantly since 2009 with the commissioning of the third phase of the Hidd Power Company desalination plant, which has raised output to 90mn gallons a day (g/d) - an increase of 60mn g/d over its previous capacity.

The Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) is the agency responsible for the production and supply of power and water in Bahrain, working as an independent arm of the state. It has successfully pushed for the development of IWPPs via the third phase of Hidd's desalination plant and the award of the Al Dur IWPP contract.

The kingdom has also drafted a national policy for wastewater, including the reuse of treated sewage effluence. A major boost to wastewater treatment capacity will come with the development of the Muharraq wastewater plant, which will have a capacity of 100,000m3 per day (m3/d).

The EWA has also made improvements in order to increase sanitation and sewage connection coverage to 88% of the island's population, and is on target to reach full coverage by 2015.

The EWA is also looking to award a consultancy contract for a water transmission development scheme which will add 165km of new pipelines, which will carry an extra 48mn g/d of water produced from the Al Dur IWPP. The government is now looking to ramp up the private-led development of Bahrain's water sector, making the investment climate even more business-friendly.

The Muharraq sewage treatment plant is the first major example of the country's privatisation efforts and to ensure its success, the government has guaranteed effluent supplies and has assured companies operating the plant that it will take all of the treated water. The Public Works Ministry awarded the contract to a consortium comprising Korea's Samsung Engineering, with the UK-based United Utilities International and the UAE's Invest AD. The consortium - which beat five other bidders - will build, own and operate (BOO) a new 100,000 m3/day sewage treatment plant and a 15km-deep gravity sewer conveyance system in Muharraq - under a 27-year sewage treatment agreement.

Bahrain is also persevering with small scale desalination schemes. In September 2010, the Ministry of Commerce & Industry approved plans for a new US$18mn desalination plant, which will have a 3.5mn litre capacity and will be located at the Arab Ship Repair Yard in Hidd. The planned reverse osmosis (RO) seawater plant will be built by India's Gemsil Engineering & Management Company. There are also plans for wind-powered desalination projects in Bahrain.

The kingdom's progress in bringing new desalination capacity on stream will enable it to keep a handle on water demand over the forecast period. Though groundwater output will be well down on its 2010 peak of 10.5bn gallons over the next four years, we envisage a small increase in production that will keep its contribution to overall water supplies at just over 10%.

Bahrain's main existing wastewater treatment plant is at Tubli, servicing the Manama area. It has the capacity to process 160,000m3/d of secondary treated effluence. Given excessive hydraulic overloading, the quality of treated effluent at Tubli has declined markedly. The Ministry of Work planned to expand the plant under a new design and build contract, increasing capacity to 350,000m3/d. However, the ministry has changed tack, and now plans to build a greenfield plant rather than overhaul Tubli.

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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.