Drake & Scull is keen to join Saudi water initiative

Saudi Arabia has committed over $66 billion to long-term capital investments over the next 10 years to promote its water sector. The basic demand for provision of public water services, an expansionary economic policy, a dynamic construction sector and water-intensive operational developments in the oil and gas industry influenced the allocation.
The planned investments by the country’s visionary leadership have the potential to significantly enhance the Kingdom’s national security and economic strength. Furthermore, by encouraging private-public partnerships, the country will become better equipped to tackle challenges such as low water tariffs and high costs of water production and transportation.
Recognizing the importance of government-industry collaboration in achieving national goals, Drake & Scull International PJSC has expressed its full commitment to taking part in the Saudi government’s initiative. The regional market leader delivering integrated end-to-end services in construction and engineering fields will contribute to developmental efforts by offering the global expertise of its team of engineering experts combined with the company’s extensive water and power experience.
Khaldoun Tabari, CEO of DSI, said: “KSA is going through a very interesting phase in terms of development. The increased government expenditures toward infrastructure and water resources expansion in the Kingdom not only enhances our potential to get actively involved in mega projects, but also presents us with an opportunity — albeit a challenging one — to transform its water sector.”
DSI, is especially poised to capitalize on the investments as it has already made with the acquisition of Passavant-Roediger, a global developer of wastewater, water and sludge treatment technologies, and has firmly established itself as the go-to-specialist for water and wastewater treatment requirements.
Mazen Bachir, managing director, Passavant-Roediger, said: “The length of DSI’s operation in the Kingdom allows it to adapt to the complexities and dynamics of the Saudi market. Passavant-Roediger brings with it advanced technologies and expertise that is unparalleled in the market. Combined, these complementing business streams position the organization to provide exceptional value to clients through seamless engineering and procurement capabilities.”
Passavant-Roediger’s high-rate water purification technology based on its patented Turbo-Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) process and state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities for specialized digestion components has made the company a preferred partner for water management developments. It has been involved in several projects in the Middle East region in recent years, most notably its electromechanical works for Al-Arar’s Reverse Osmosis plant for the treatment of brackish ground water to produce 25,000 m³ of potable water per day. It also executed the project for upgrading and extending the Marafiq Jubail Sludge Digestion Plant in Riyadh.
DSI acquired Passavant-Roediger in 2009 to enhance its capabilities in the region’s water and wastewater sector. Passavant-Roediger is a major global developer of wastewater, water and sludge treatment technologies, with operations across Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
The company delivers comprehensive in-house solutions for the design, supply, build, operations and maintenance, wastewater and water treatment facilities and is one of the leading engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), wastewater and water treatment (WWT) and re-use design and build contractors worldwide.