58 desalination plants in Egypt procured by Almar Water Solutions

Almar Water Solutions (part of Abdul Latif Jameel Energy), a foremost developer of water infrastructure solutions worldwide has made an agreement for the procurement of Ridgewood Egypt a services company.

The Ridgewood Group is accompany dedicated to providing desalinated water to industrial clients and the tourism sector and with this new acquisition, Almar Water Solutions consolidates its global strategy of growing through the awarding of new projects and the acquisition of assets, while strengthening its services line, which will be responsible for operating and maintaining the plants.

The 58 desalination plants have a total owned installed desalination capacity of 82,440 cubic meters of potable water per day and most plants provide pure water to the commercial, tourism and industrial sectors, which are dependent on the supply of safe drinking water to carry out their businesses.

This new contract marks the first successful portfolio addition by the joint venture created in April 2020 with Hassan Allam Utilities BV (HAU), the public utilities and investment unit of the leading regional construction and engineering group Hassan Allam Holding (HAH).

CEO of Almar Water Solutions Carlos Cosín said:

“With this new contract, Almar Water continues to expand rapidly beyond its portfolio of new, ‘greenfield’ projects under development with assets already in operation (or so-called ‘brownfield’ projects) expanding and diversifying our services, with additional capacity of over 80,000 m3/day of drinking water. The acquisition of the Ridgewood Group also cements Almar Water Solutions’ entry into the Egyptian market, a strategic country for the company”.

After Shuqaiq 3, (Saudi Arabia), Muharraq (Bahrain) and Osmoflo (Chile), the acquisition of Ridgewood consolidates the path of rapid and sustainable growth that Almar Water Solutions began at its creation, adding to a diversified portfolio.

The United Nations predicts that by 2025, Egypt could reach the level of “absolute water (availability) crisis” (*) dropping to levels of less than 500 cubic meters of water per capita, posing a serious problem both for the agricultural sector, which accounts for more than 80% of water use, and for the population in general.

The opportunities for private sector involvement in Egypt are becoming increasingly evident in water projects, particularly in desalination and wastewater.  The development and private financing of desalination facilities has evolved considerably, largely due to the need to ensure water resources.

In addition to its offices in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Latin America, Almar now has two regional platforms, Chile and Egypt, from which to continue its growth in markets with extensive water infrastructure needs.

(*) Source: EGYPT Enabling Private Investment and Commercial Financing in Infrastructure, World Bank Group