28/04/2009
Today, King Abdullah ibn Abdul-Azeez opened a combined cycle plant (2750 MW) and a large sea water desalination facility of 800 000 m3/day capacity, making it the largest in the world. The plant will be erected in Jubail, an industrial town in the northeast of Saudi Arabia.
Engineer Thamer ibn Saud Ash-Sharhan, Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Jubail Water and Electric Company, said that this world class project was completed on time with the cooperation of several participants, most importantly the Royal Commission of Jubail and Yanbu,Marafiq Electric and Water Company, the Ministry of Petroleum and Minerals, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Water and Electricity, Saudi Aramco, the Saudi Electric Company, and a number of other Saudi and foreign companies.
The plant began producing electricity on the 25th of April, however, the plant will not begin commercial production until next September. Water production is set to begin next month.
Ash-Sharhan added that this is the most important big industrial project that the Kingdom has ever seen and a major turning point in attracting both domestic and foreign investment. The plant is also expected to provide hundreds of employment opportunities.
