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Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – 5 June, 2012: Metito, the leading provider of total intelligent water management solutions in emerging markets, held a press conference today to formally re-launch its operations in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its intention to invest half a billion Saudi Riyal (SAR 500M) in the water and waste water industry over the next 3 years. The press conference was hosted by Fady Juez, Metito Managing Director and in the presence of Salah Ackad, Metito General Manager in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Abdullah Al Gholaikah, former governor of the Saline Water Conversion Corporation, SWCC, also attended the conference as a special guest of Metito.

During the conference, the water situation in the region and particularly in The Kingdom was discussed, and the most viable solutions to recycle and reuse water explored. Metito also shared a case study of one of its most prominent projects in the region utilizing technologies similar to those discussed.

The re-launch of Metito in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia sees the resumption of a strong and valuable relationship that was first established in the late 60s, when Metito was primarily engaged in the supply of water desalination systems. Now, at the forefront of the water, desalination and wastewater industry and with a work force in excess of 2500 employees and a global project portfolio worth 1 billion US dollars, Metito returns as a provider for total water treatment solutions.

Commenting on the re-launch, Fady Juez said, “It is both honoring and exciting for us to resume our operations in The Kingdom, a market we feel forever indebted to. More than 40 years ago, Metito’s journey of success started here and since then we continued to develop as professionals, grow as a business and to refine our expertise to successfully expand in the Middle East, Africa, South East Asia”. “With that in mind, we were adamant to come back today to Saudi Arabia and harness our resources to build an operational backbone that can support Metito in playing an effective role in the development of the water, desalination and wastewater industry”, Fady Juez adds.

During the period Metito wasn’t operating in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, it continued evaluating the market and observing the local trends to better understand the services and solutions that may benefit the industry most. Through such assessments, Metito was able to structure its business model in The Kingdom to enable it to provide the needed services, supported by the company’s well established global knowhow that is honed through more than 50 years of refined industry experience.

Metito Saudi’s project portfolio now holds projects that are worth in excess of SAR 60M, in just one year of its recent come back. The company is planning to further grow these numbers and to support its operations through investing half a billion Saudi Riyals in the next three years. With this investment Metito cements its commitment to the Saudi market and pledge to continue honoring the long standing relation that was acquired over years of professional and world class quality operations in the Kingdom.

A delegation of twenty-five MIT Sloan MBA students visited Metito’s following a five week seminar course on the business of water, to bridge the gap between theory and business practice within the water industry both in Turkey and the UAE.

The visit was hosted by Rami Ghandour, Executive Director Metito Utilities and attended by other members of the management team at Metito.

During the visit the students, joined by Catherine Gamon, Director Student Life Office MIT Sloan, were introduced to the different services provided by water and waste water management companies through their distinct businesses.

Following this was an interactive Q&A session where the opportunities, challenges and prospects of the industry were discussed and potential career paths for professionals seeking roles in the water industry highlighted. The students were also guided in a tour at Metito’s factory to showcase examples of the work done through this unit.

“In the case of the water study tour, we developed hypotheses before travelling. The meetings with entities such as Metito provided us with the opportunity to test these hypotheses and to learn more in general about the water industry. Metito, provided an insight into the private sector within the water industry – something that we were particularly interested in,” said Zainab Memon, 2013 MBA Candidate – MIT Sloan School of Management and one of the students organising the trip.

Commenting on this Rami Ghandour said, “It is wonderful that a prestigious institution such as MIT has a course on water as part of its MBA programme. I was particularly impressed that the course content and site visits were all student organized, and the students who came on the visit were all very switched on. The business of water needs to be focused on and such activities can only be positive for all our futures. I look forward to more universities following this lead.”

Dubai, U.A.E. – 25th March, 2012– Metito, the leading provider of total intelligent water management solutions in emerging markets, has signed an agreement with the Abu Dhabi Ports Company to supply a sewage treatment plant for the Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD).

The contract; valued at AED 77.7 million, will see Metito design and construct a state-of-the-art sewage plant in KIZAD, in addition to developing all associated and required infrastructure and utilities.

Omar Zoubi, General Manager of Metito Abu Dhabi commented: “We are very pleased to be onboard with the Abu Dhabi Ports Company. KIZAD is a very ambitious project that will contribute to the transformation of Abu Dhabi into a world-class trade destination.”

The plant will occupy a total area of 81,250m2 and will be designed to treat combined wastewater flows with an initial average daily flow of 6,700m3 with an option for expansion to 11,000m3/day. The plant will adopt the advanced extended aeration technology to biologically treat the sewage water in a very environment-friendly and efficient manner Phase 1 of the project will be operational by 2012, with a potential expansion by 2014.

“We are very excited to work with Metito,” added Ashraf Al Khaznadar – Executive Vice President from the Abu Dhabi Ports Company. “KIZAD is one of the biggest and most ambitious projects in the region; therefore we needed a partner with a successful track record both regionally and internationally. Metito is a perfect choice for us and we are looking forward to work with them.”

In addition to designing and constructing the plant, Metito will also be responsible for developing an employee induction program, following the handover of the plant, which will ensure that employees are well equipped to run and manage the plant sustainably. Metito will also be responsible for regular maintenance of the facility.

As water conservation and desalination is one of the most important aspects for the human and business development in the middle east, walid oraby takes a look at what is being done in this area in Qatar at present and concludes the country’s water industry is setting a good example for the region.

Communities around the world face an increasingly wide array of challenges with the demand for water increasing in parallel with the demographic pressures, urban growth, dwindling natural resources, increasing industrial activities and climate change, which are all upsetting the environmental balance and living conditions of people around the world. According to the Aquastat 2008 report, the gulf is one of the most arid regions of the world, and has access to just one percent of the world’s fresh water supply coupled with five percent of the world’s population and the lowest rainfall-which presents an even bigger challenge.

By 2020,the gulf region’s water requirements are set to grow even further in the agricultural, domestic and industrial sectors. With that said, and as a result of a series of projects that are under way in Qatar, the country is facing no serious obstacles in meeting water demand in the foreseeable future, and already has plans in place to increase its desalination capacity. This is supported by the Qatar’s National Development Strategy, which will see billions invested in the private noon-hydrocarbons sectors, ensuring a steady stream of capital flowing into the critical infrastructure sectors over the next decade – including water. This presents huge opportunities for growth in the water industry.

In both of the most recent conferences in Qatar, Projects Qatar 2012 and Water World Middle East Conferences and Exhibition, the challenges that may face Qatar, as an example of rapidly growing cities, were highlighted and solutions discussed. Applying public private partnership models were among the solutions, where growth potential has been noted with organizations becoming more interested in the infrastructure industry in Qatar, especially in the water and wastewater treatment projects.

According to Issa Hila Al Kuwari, Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa) presidents statement on February 6,2012 during the opening of the Power-Gen Middle East conference 2012,he mentioned that around 72 million imperial gallons per day (MIGD)will need to be additional 192 MIGD will required. The Qatari government is keen to keep promoting investment opportunities to local and internationals firms to meet these ambitious goals. The government acknowledges and rewards industry expertise, which acts as a great motivation and driver for investors in further growth in Qatar.

Following the trade events in Qatar, it was announced at the MEED Quality Awards for Projects 2012 that the Gulf Cooperation council is investing US$1 trillion (QR 364 Trillion) worth of the projects in Qatar alone that have yet to be awarded. This is major investment, and goes to show the commitment of the governments of the region to improving and developing infrastructure and construction projects, and indeed the potential the region holds as key hub and business, industry and trade.

Such potential is providing new platforms for many companies to play a role in the strategic development of Qatar and this coupled with major events that have take place in Qatar and this coupled with major events that have taken place in Qatar, or will take in the future, have positive implications for the infrastructure of the nation, which includes water and wastewater treatment projects. A good example of this would be the 2022 world cup, where Metito seeks to contribute effectively to the construction work and facilities that are to be provided to serve an event of such international significance and interest.

The same platform was extended to the iconic The Pearl-Qatar, the first Qatar to be available for freehold ownership by foreign nationals. The-Pearl Qatar is managed by the United Development Company (UDC).Qatar’s largest private sector shareholding company, with a mission to identity and invest in log-term projects that contribute to the country’s growth. This is an important, ambitious and prestigious project, which clearly demonstrates the budding economy of the country, and the forward thinking strategy its leaders are following.

For The Pearl-Qatar, Metito is completing an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) project comprising a sea water reverse osmosis desalination plant of 35,000 cubic meters per day product capacity, including marine sea water intake and reject outfall works, to supply water for district cooling, potable use and irrigation. Sea water from the Arabian Gulf with capacity of more than 100,000 cubic meters per day and salinity(TDS) of 48,000 milligrams per liter(mg/l) is reduced to as low as 400 mg/l in a two stage RO membrane based treatment process complemented by per-treatment and post treatment of water, all in full compliance with World Health Organization as well as Qatar’s local water Quality standards.

Such projects are vital in arid landscapes, which suffer minimal rainfall, and the water industry can play a leading and sustainable role in Qatar’s plans for growth. Apart from what has already been commissioned, we do not envisage a major increase in water desalination output, as Qatar has been very successful with managing new capacity and bringing it on-stream to keep pace with growing demand. According to Business Monitor International desalinated water production is set to grow from nearly 80,000 million gallons in 2011 to over 100,000 million gallons bye 2015, as a result of projects already under way, and this is actually relatively limited growth compared to other countries.

Qatar can really be held up as a positive example in the region on how tactically managing a water sector through effective use of public private partnership models can ensure a steady hand is kept on a country’s water industry and its resources. Qatar is growing at a remarkable rate, but it has not lost sight of the implications that increased infrastructure will bring, and so it is positioning itself effectively for the future. For its part, Qatar’s state utility Kahramaa has to be among those applauded for its vision, intelligent investment and strong project capabilities.

Metito has been working on quenching the Middle East’s thirst since the 1950s and today its global project portfolio is worth more than $1bn. Its extensive presence in the region and commitment to embracing, eveloping and introducing new technology to the Middle East has earned it a formidable reputation, and the backbone of Metito has always been its EPC business. In the mid-1990s the firm took advantage of an upward trend in utilities in the Middle East, noticing that private sector companies were getting increasing understanding from governments in their participation.“So from the EPC side we started moving into utilities, and that’s grown to a level where it’s now a separate company,” Fady Juez, Metito’s Managing Director explains.

Around the same time, the fi rm also began focusing on emerging markets, with the Middle East and Africa region becoming a growth area for Metito. The company is now executing projects from Indonesia to Morocco, in Africa, Pakistan and also executing 12 packages of projects in Australia.

“The Gulf, and I’d say the MENA region at large, is one of the regions of the world with the largest scarcities of water,”

This emphasis on non-conventional water has been a boon to water technology firms like Metito, but Juez is keen to point out that when his company makes a commitment in a country, it’s in for the long haul.says Juez. “The ratio of renewable water to people is very low – we have no rivers and the groundwater is mostly not renewable; the region has to rely on nonconventional options to supply its water requirements, and that means the sea.”

“Our business model is a sustainable one – when we go into a country or region, we go there to stay and grow it. We try to interact with the decision makers to give the best that is needed, and be as educational as possible so that we exchange our knowledge and work together to achieve the goals we’ve set. That’s the only way we’re going to have sustainability in the region.”

It’s a similar story with the company’s localisation efforts. “We’re always frank with our clients, and we transfer whatever we know to them. We want them to know what we know, and with that comes people. For example, we have 700 people in our Egypt operation and they’re all Egyptian – there’s not a single non-Egyptian from the MD to the lab technician,” Juez says with a smile.

In terms of knowledge, Juez also dismisses criticisms that the Middle East region has been a cautious adopter of new technology.

“On the contrary, I think that this region is very much avant-garde in accepting new technologies, and you can see it – the biggest desalination plants in the world are here; the first multi stage flash plant in the world was built in Kuwait. The first reverse osmosis plant outside the United States was done by us in a small village in Libya, and people here are receptive to new technology.

“With the region becoming more and more industrialised and the tourism industry developing, the stress on our water will increase. So we need to come up with more smart technologies to ensure supply, and we’re doing it. We’re recycling more, treating more, satisfying industrial needs from wastewater recycling leaving the desalination water for personal use, and even importing virtual water.”

Asked about Metito’s R&D, Juez smiles. “I like to say that we do the ‘D’ and universities do the ‘R’,” he says.

“We believe that there’s going to be more and more private sector involvement in supporting the public sector cater for increasing demand.”

“We’re not a university; we look at new technologies and new research in places where there are lots of laboratories and educational institutions to see what’s happening, and we work with organisations like the International Desalination Association to look at new technologies and assess them. We like to do the development – we introduced reverse osmosis to the region, were the first to build MBR here and also the first to do a concession for the private sector in this part of the world. We like to be ahead of everybody in developing new technology, and bringing it to market,” says Juez. But perhaps the water scarcity solution

with the biggest impact is the reduction of demand.

“We need to work on reducing demand, and I think the best way to do this is awareness,” says Juez. In many areas in the region people practically don’t pay for the water they get, and that’s half the problem. They also don’t even know the cost of the water they’re getting for free,” he says, suggesting that bills should be introduced even if they don’t have to be paid. “People should at least know how much they’re using.”

“I think that the Middle East region is very much avant-garde in accepting new technologies.”

Clearly, easing the demand would allow the rate of construction – and therefore cost – of new infrastructure to be slowed. “This would definitely ease pressure on the construction of new desalination plants a lot,” says Juez. “You take the average per capita consumption in the world, compare it with the use of each country and you try and benchmark it, to come down to that level, which would be a very simple way of doing it. If you control water use you can reduce 30 per cent of your daily requirements by closing taps, having smarter flushing systems and grey water recycling, for example. There are small things everyone can do to drastically reduce the amount of water used, and this would help to reduce the pressure on desalination.”

Naturally, there are indirect costs to desalination, including the burning of fuels that would otherwise be exported, and environmental costs.

Perhaps one source of water that’s been under-utilised in the past is wastewater; as Juez points out, wastewater is initially a problem but one that can be solved and turned into a resource using water treatment technology.

“We have been able to remove the impact of wastewater on the environment by treating sewage and recycling it – I think water is going to play a major role in the water requirements of this part of the world.”

So far, the Middle East region has been successful in adopting the use of wastewater for irrigation. Efforts to spread some greenery to desert regions have largely been successful thanks to the tertiary level treatment of wastewater, but Juez thinks more can be done.

“Now, I think the region – and this applies to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar – is moving very strongly toward taking it a notch higher and I would agree that the Middle East has been late in taking up wastewater reuse to the industrial application level. Process water users, such as district cooling firms and industrial estate water are moving very quickly towards this, and this then takes you to a more advanced treatment. You can put a desalination plant after it and bring the water close to drinking quality,” Juez says.

Bringing wastewater to drinking quality hasn’t been particularly successful in the Middle East, largely due to the connotations of its provenance. But in an aquifer recharge situation there’s no reason why treated wastewater shouldn’t form a significant part of our drinking water.

“Acceptability is going to be the issue,” explains Juez. “But now the water can be treated, recycled to a drinking water level and injected into the aquifer. Then, down the line you might have a well and you pick it up again – it’s like a river.”

Desalinating water is still not a cheap option, but lowering costs is a key aim for water companies in the region.

“We’re working very hard on bringing costs down, both directly and indirectly,” explains Juez, “and also

on technologies that will reduce the impact on the environment to the minimum, whether to the sea or the air. We’re also working on technologies that reduce power consumption and chemical consumption, and the cost per cubic metre of desalted water has already gone down drastically.”

Metito’s own desalination technology focuses around the liquid separation method; membrane-based reverse osmosis that the company has championed from the early days “We only do membrane-based desalination because we believe it’s cleaner, for the simple reason you’re not heating anything. You’re just going from liquid to liquid, which makes less of an impact on the environment and also means the reject water isn’t hot, impacting the environment less.

At the time, we also saw that there was a huge amount of technology enhancement potential that could occur with membrane-based technology, and we’ve moved from the cost of a membrane that used to be $5,000 to less than $1,000. We’ve moved from recoveries of 25 per cent to sometimes 50 per cent and power consumption from eight kwh per cubic metre down to three; there is a lot of advancement happening in reverse osmosis.”

“We need to work on reducing water demand, and I think the best way to do this is awareness.”

However, Juez acknowledges that distillation methods do have their place, and that in some situations can make good sense, although there is no agreement on a single ‘best’ technology.

“Nobody is coming to a consensus but both methods are seeing advancements and both are working towards a common goal – to ensure sustainability of production, reduce power consumption to the minimum, reduce the impact to the environment and also increase efficiency.”

With the Middle East’s industry and population continuing to expand, Saudi Arabia and Iraq are both providing interest for Metito. “Saudi Arabia is a large country with great demands, and the government is putting a lot of money into supporting the infrastructure work. Water is one of those elements, so we’re looking at Saudi very closely,” Juez says. “Iraq is another market. Historically Iraq was one of the biggest markets for Metito in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and we only left when the UN told us to. Now we’re back and executing projects there.”

When it comes to development across the region, Juez is confident that the private sector will play an increasingly influential role in thesupport of governments.

“Personally, and I think as a company,we believe that there’s going to be more and more private sector involvement in supporting the public sector cater for increasing demand.We’re going to see more and more

PPPs coming up, and we would very much like to see more time and money spent on issues other than production, such as distribution, leakage control, billing, connection, awareness and tariff adjustment. These things can all directly reduce the consumption and hence reduce demand.”

“We would like to remain the leading water company in the emerging markets, and that’s what we’re trying to do. And leading for us means a lot of things – it means sustainability, honesty and supporting the people of the areas we’re working in. Growth and profits too, of course, but we see ourselves consolidating our leadership and increasing our support of governments under PPPs.”

Metito has secured a contract worth US$9 million to upgrade the main Freeha Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) in the holy city of Karbala to treat an increased capacity of 60,000 m3 of effluent per day.

Located approximately 100km South-West of Baghdad, the facility upgrade is slated for completion in the final quarter in 2012.

Metito, which has been working in Iraq for 30 years and said the country is expected to invest US$5.3 billion into infrastructure over the next two years, will deliver the project in partnership with Iraqi group Balad Al Khebra.

Mustafa Hasan, general manager of Metito Jordan and Iraq, said: “Iraq is striving to improve infrastructure across the whole country which will create interesting opportunities for the water sector.”

Mohammed Al Ezzi, general manager of Balad Al Khebra, added: “The plant was built in the seventies in the suburbs while it is now considered to be the epicenter of Karbala. The city is witnessing a population growth and an increasing number of visitors which urges the need of such investment into the water infrastructure. Our work will ensure an improved quality of the treated effluent while eliminating odour problems in the surrounding area among other implications.”

International companies are still wary of the security issues in Iraq. One successful player in the wastewater field says the situation is improving – and that the rewards on offer are worth the effort.

Emirates-based water and wastewater specialist Metito is surfing a wave of new contracts in the Iraqi construction boom, and has notched up five contract wins since the start of the year. Its latest
award, to construct a 50,000m3/d wastewater treatment plant in Najaf, comes on the back of contracts in Karbala (to upgrade and expand a WWTP from 20,000m3/d to 60,000m3/d) and Basra (three WWTPs of 10,000m3/d each). It also has five water treatment plants currently under construction in the country.

Moustafa Hasan, General Manager,Turkey, Iraq, Levant & CIS, told GWI he is very optimistic about the prospect of greenfield wastewater infrastructure development in Iraq in coming years. “There will be a lot of new development, because this sector was not touched by the oil-for-food programme. Very little was done under the previous regime, and I think it is the right time now to install and construct new STPs in Iraq. With the worldwide increase in oil prices, funds are more accessible now, and the need for such infrastructure projects is there.”

He added that while foreign companies have established more of a presence in southern areas of the country where the oil industry is a major client, developing links with federal and local government bodies based in other parts of the country has been harder for foreign companies, with concerns about the security situation a constant issue.

Although it is headquartered in the Emirates, the company deals with business development in Iraq from its branch office in Jordan. Hasan said the company tries to operate the same way as local firms whenever possible when dealing with the government, adding that security is still an issue, although conditions are constantly improving within the country.

Some of Metito’s contracts have been negotiated with the ministry of public works, while others were negotiated directly with local governorates. It also takes different approaches to projects depending on contractual requirements – sometimes acting alone, sometimes as a sub-contractor focusing on treatment elements of a contract, and other times as part of a joint venture. The project in Karbala was won as part of a JV with Iraqi group Balad Al Khebra.

Metito, a leading provider of intelligent water management and solutions, recently hosted a delegation of eight UK companies from across the water and waste water sector as part of their trade mission to the UAE.

The mission was organised by UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the arm of the UK Government that helps UK-based companies succeed in the global economy and assists overseas companies to bring their high-quality investment to the UK.

Ian Gibbons, Deputy Consul General, British Embassy Dubai, said: “This seminar and subsequent visit to Metito will enable lasting relationships and business to be achieved between our two countries and I look forward to seeing the results in the coming months and years.”

Three new sewage treatment projects totalling QR149mn are being executed in Qatar for Ashghal by Metito, a leading global player in the design and supply of water, waste water treatment and water desalination systems and plants.

These are a QR99mn second phase expansion of the existing Industrial Area Sewage Treatment Plant (STP), a QR40mn closed loop sewage tanker reception facility at the Doha West Sewage Treatment Works and a QR10mn project for three mobile sludge dewatering units.

All the projects are scheduled for completion within the next six months and a year, it was announced yesterday.

“Metito has been building projects in Qatar since mid-70s, started local operations in 2003, executed more than 100 projects in Qatar and holds a current local portfolio size of almost $250mn,” Metito Overseas managing director Fady Juez said.

The Industrial Area STP expansion, which started on January 1 this year, will see Metito provide a sequencing batch reactor-based treatment plant of 12,000cum/day capacity in order to reduce environmental footprints.

In addition, an ultra-filtration system of 24,000cum/day will be provided for post-treatment to cater to the existing plant as well as the new one. “This expansion will allow the plant to produce water suitable for irrigation and eliminate the hassle of transporting sewage in tanker trucks,” Metito Qatar and Bahrain general manager Walid Oraby said.

Work has started on the closed loop sewage tanker reception facility at the Doha West Sewage Treatment Works, which Metito is designing and building to a nine-month timeline. “It will be constructed to receive sewage of 50,000cum/day in tanker reception stations/bays followed by balancing and pumping to the existing treatment plant,” Juez explained.

The development will feature modern odour control units and upon completion, the plant will serve the surrounding communities with temporary sewage storage tanks, reduced sewage tanker movement on roads and systematic and organised reception of sewage.

“This sewage can be treated by the existing downstream plant and the resultant effluent can be used for irrigation,” Oraby said.

The project to design and build three mobile sludge dewatering units will help Ashghal to take the containerised trailer mounted units to various STPs in Qatar.

“These units are expected to be ready in six months,” Oraby stated.

The major projects among Metito’s ongoing assignments in Qatar also include Lusail pumping stations (total of 600,000cum/day), Lusail tanker receiving station (total of 30,000cum/day), seawater reverse osmosis plant for The Pearl Qatar (35,000cum/day), STP for New Doha International Airport (30,000cum/day) waste water treatment plant for Qatar Petroleum’s Emergency and Safety Training College (14,000cum/day), Shell GTL waste water treatment plant (12,000cum/day) and STP for Al Khor Municipality (6,000cum/day).

“The major advantage of reverse osmosis technology is that seawater is not heated to produce drinking water and as a result, the water discharged to the sea will be of the same temperature as that of the water taken in,” Juez added.