Azzour North One Independent Water & Power Project (IWPP) has started full commercial operations. The USD 1.7 billion facility is Kuwait’s first independent power and water facility.

It has the capacity to generate 10% of Kuwait’s power requirements as peak capacity with 1,539 MW, and 20% of the country’s water generation with 107 million gallons (around 405,000 m³) per day (MIGD). The combined facility of power and water generation represents Kuwait’s most efficient source of electricity.

Azzour North One IWPP is owned and operated by Shamal Azzour Al-Oula KSC that is 40% owned by a private consortium comprising ENGIE, Sumitomo Corporation and A.H. Al Sagar & Brothers. The remaining 60% is owned by the Government of Kuwait. The Government of Kuwait is mandated to sell 50% of its ownership to Kuwaiti citizens, through an Initial Public Offering (IPO). The government will retain 10% stake following the IPO.

Isabelle Kocher said: “We are delighted and proud to announce the formal commencement of operations at the Azzour North One power and water plant in Kuwait. This project illustrates the know-how and expertise of our teams to develop such large projects, in a region where we are the leading independent power and desalination water developer and producer. ENGIE owes also this success to the close alignment and cooperation of its project partners, contractors and suppliers.”

The power and treated water produced from the plant will be entirely supplied to the country’s national power and water grid, operated by the Kuwait Ministry of Electricity and Water under a 40-year long-term Energy Conversion and Water Purchase Agreement. ENGIE and Sumitomo will undertake the operation and maintenance of the plant on an equal share basis.

Azzour North One IWPP is the first stage of the Kuwait’s plan to significantly increase capacity over the coming years, and falls within a larger effort to meet an anticipated peak demand of 25,000 megawatts by 2025. It is part of an overall IWPP located in the Azzour area, which is planned to be developed over five phases, for a total capacity of 4,800 MW of electricity and approximately 280 MIGD (around 1.1 million m³ per day) of desalinated water. Electricity and water are to be tendered over a period of four to six years to meet a projected rapid increase in electricity demand (+ 7.6% per annum until 2020) against the backdrop of fast economic growth.

We are the leading independent power and desalination water developer and producer in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, with a total gross portfolio of 30,000 MW of power and over 1,200 million gallons (around 4.5 million m³) per day of desalination water production in operation.

>> Press release