New Middle East Megacity Projects Create Huge Economic Opportunity For British Water Expertise

By?Mark Coates MCIHT, Senior International Director of Infrastructure Policy Advancement,?Bentley Systems.

British firms have a multibillion-pound opportunity to deliver water infrastructure for new, world-leading property developments in the Middle East.

The Egyptian Ministry of Housing, Utilities & Urban Communities signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Kingdom’s leading water sector trade association, British Water, during the U.K. World Water Innovation Summit in London.

The agreement aims to establish a framework for bilateral cooperation on water projects for 27 provinces and new cities across Egypt. It will allow the export of the U.K.’s water sector and supply chain expertise needed to help with Egypt’s ambitious modernisation plans on desalination, water reuse, and investment in human capital.

Egypt plans to build new cities spanning 580,000 acres and accommodating 30 million inhabitants. The country’s population is set to grow from 100 million to 180 million in the next 40 years. These new cities include the New Administrative Capital, a city of 6.5 million people located 45 kilometres outside Cairo, with all main government departments, foreign embassies, a 20-tower central business district, and the “iconic tower” that will be the tallest in Africa.

Egypt is far from unique in Africa and the Middle East. Many parts of the area have rapidly growing populations and are keen to bring order to new urban growth, no longer wanting their cities to be overcrowded or relatively unplanned. These new cities offer not just more space to live, but also the prospect of living better with more thought given to the supply and conservation of key resources like water.

Perhaps the most high-profile new development is the smart city of NEOM in Saudi Arabia, with three futuristic new cities—The Line, Trojena, and Oxagon—built in an area the size of Belgium.

NEOM water transmission requires approximately 600 kilometers of large diameter (DN 700 to DN 2200) carbon steel pipe, associated valves, equipment, utilities, and pipeline culverts. Up to 20 pumping stations will be commissioned and delivered by the end of 2024, and six major water reservoirs (and other large storage tanks) with a total storage capacity of 6 million cubic metres will be delivered over the next four years.

In response to the business opportunities for U.K. firms in the region, British Water is setting up a new Middle East and Africa (MEA) focus group. In addition to existing opportunities for British firms to provide physical infrastructure, there will be a significant need for British expertise in the field of digital and data. In the new city of The Line, all water assets will be smart and able to be monitored and controlled in real time (or near-real time) due to data and digital software.

NEOM will meet all its water needs through desalination using revolutionary and sustainable technology, which is fully powered by renewable energy. High-value chemicals and minerals for use in industry will be extracted from the brine left behind by the desalination process and, to protect the marine ecosystem, the development is committed to a fully integrated resource recovery seawater treatment (FIRRST)—a world’s first at this scale.

The Middle East’s new megacities place a huge value on data and digital solutions due to the dry conditions and the extreme water stress in those countries.

NEOM has pledged that 100% of wastewater will be recycled and used for irrigation. It is also determined to recover all resources from wastewater and biosolids, and then harvest cellulose, nutrients, grit, and biogas, which will be used for landscaping, agriculture, construction, and to offset energy needs.

Large-capacity water reservoirs will also be strategically located throughout NEOM. Potable water reservoirs, able to satisfy up to five days of demand, will be built at key points in the network. Most of these reservoirs are significant concrete structures with a storage capacity of over 100,000 cubic meters.

British contractors are in a key position to help with these projects. British Water already has direct relationships with Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Major U.K. contractors—with which British Water has strong relationships— are all active on these new megaprojects. Mott MacDonald, for instance, has a 70-year history in Egypt.

The idea behind British Water’s MEA focus group is that it can also open the door to smaller, more specialized contractors with specific expertise in water technologies, data and digital solutions, water treatments, and expert consultancy, as well as plant, pipe, and monitoring equipment.

Scale is everything. British Water can leverage the skills, experience, and contacts of its 400 members. And it does not end with Egypt and Saudi Arabia— British Water is planning different focus groups for different world regions.

To find out more about the British Water MEA focus group, please contact? Charles Shachinda , British Water’s Technical Officer – International.