Drake & Scull Water and Power wins AED 290 million contract in Saudi Arabia

Drake & Scull Water and Power (DSWP), a subsidiary of Drake & Scull International (DSI) PJSC, has been awarded a AED 290 million EPCO (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Operation) contract for a District Cooling Plant in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

"This latest contract win is a step forward for Drake & Scull International in further establishing our presence within Saudi Arabia's growing water and power industry," said Khaldoun Tabari, CEO of DSI.

Tabari continued, "With a proven track record in this sector, we are able to deliver quality services and projects to our clients due to the niche engineering capabilities offered by our water and power business stream."

The contract includes the design and build of the district cooling plant, which has a capacity of 35,000 tonnes. DSWP will also be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the project for a period of ten years.

"We are confident that our past technical and operational knowledge in the field, a strong portfolio of prominent projects which includes two of the world's largest district cooling plants located in Dubai, and our understanding of the complex Saudi market dynamics will support us in achieving success in the Kingdom and the region as a whole," commented Tawfiq Abu Soud, Executive Director of DSWP.

As of September this year, DSI's projects in Saudi Arabia contributed to 29% of the company's total backlog, including the backlog consolidation of recently acquired 'Drake & Scull International Saudi', although Tabari says "DSI aims to increase the figure to 50% by 2011 by continuing to focus our efforts and resources on the Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MEP) division and in the Kingdom's water and power industry, which has proved to be highly lucrative."

The design and build project is scheduled to start immediately and will take 18 months to complete.