(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Qatar
Electricity and Water Company (QEWC) is working on completing its local
projects at an accelerated pace and in accordance with the specified
timetables, the company's General Manager and Managing Director of
Fahad Hamad al-Mohannadi has said.
About 93% of the Umm Al Houl power
plant, which is due to be officially opened after next summer, has been
completed, he said, adding that it is currently producing 60% of its
electricity capacity and 60% of its water capacity.
In a statement on
the sidelines of a ceremony held by the Japanese Chubu Electric Power
Company on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the opening of its
office in Doha, al-Mohannadi said that Umm Al Houl power station
supports the state's consumption of water and electricity and adds about
25% to the available installed capacity.
After completion of the
plant, it will be one of the largest power and desalination plants in
the Gulf and Middle East region, especially its Reverse Osmosis System,
and will produce 60mn gallons, he added.
Regarding solar projects,
al-Mohannadi pointed out that investing in solar energy is one of
Qatar's goals, and gains global importance, as technology to benefit
from this energy is available and at reasonable prices.
He also
announced that a land was allocated by the Council of Ministers for a
plant to be built on, adding that this land will be sufficient for the
production of 500 to 700 megawatts of electricity.
The tender for
this project will be issued by the middle of next year completed, he
said, adding that first phase will be completed within 18 months and
will be operated by the end of 2019, ahead of the scheduled date by His
Highness the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.
By the middle of 2020 the plant will be fully operational, he said.
About
Facility E Project, he pointed out that the project will be located in
Ras Rukn and will be completed in 2020 to keep pace with the demand for
electricity and water.
On the company's projects abroad, al-Mohannadi
said that Nebras Power Plant is the largest investor in the electricity
sector outside Qatar of which QEWC owns 60% and Qatar Investment
Authority owns 40%. Nebras, he said, owns 35% of Dayton Station in
Indonesia, and has several plants in Jordan and Oman. The company is
looking for other opportunities in Indonesia, Pakistan and Morocco, he
pointed out.
Al-Mohannadi stressed that co-operation with Japanese
companies and banks is great and the relations are very fruitful for
both sides, noting that Japan is the biggest buyer of Qatari LNG and the
largest investor with the company outside Qatar and in Japan, which
confirms the strong ties with the Japanese companies.
He also noted
the Japanese JIBC Bank's support for the company's projects by at least
50%, pointing out that the bank considers Qatari investment as a safe
investment, whether in Qatar or in any country.
He emphasised that
the unjust siege imposed on Qatar did not affect the company's projects
and will never affect them in the future.
With regard to the Gulf
electric connection, al-Muhannadi said that it is called the safe link,
which is for the use in case of necessity, adding as Qatar has been
committed to supply some of the siege countries with gas, it is also
committed to supply them with electricity.
The President of Japan's
Chubu Electric Power Company Satoru Katsuno stressed that the long-term
relations between Japan and Qatar are in favour of establishing more
partnerships and businesses between the two countries, maintaining the
existing relationship and moving it to a wider economic horizon.
He
told reporters on the sidelines of the ceremony that Chubu is the first
Japanese company to buy the Qatari LNG, and it has had relations with
Qatar for more than 20 years, adding that during this period, strong
business relations were established, as the company worked on many
projects in Doha.
Katsuno expressed the company's desire to
strengthen ties with Qatar by entering into many of the infrastructure
projects that are being implemented.
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