The company will be responsible for the engineering, construction, assembly, testing, decommissioning and co-financing of the pilot plant. It will be located in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in a town called Ghantoot near the border of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
The plant will employ advanced reserve osmosis technology and innovative membrane distillation technology designed to optimize the traditional reverse osmosis process.
“Like Abengoa, Masdar shares a deep commitment to the development of sustainable technological solutions and we are honored to have the chance to work together again in such an innovative, forward-thinking project,” said Manuel Sanchez Ortega, Abengoa 's CEO.
Abengoa has been present in the United Arab Emirates since 2009, the country which produces 50 percent of the world’s desalinated water. The company has developed other projects with Masdar, most notably one of the world’s largest parabolic trough plants, Shams, which has been in operation since last September.
“Water security is one of the most pressing issues around the world,” said Dr. Al Jaber, Minister of State of UAE and Chairman of Masdar, “and with the Gulf region’s climate we have limited natural options. Combining best-in-class desalination technologies with our abundant solar resources is a logical step toward securing our country’s water supplies in the most energy efficient way possible.”
The project is just the latest example of Abengoa’s commitment to R&D and providing technological solutions for global issues such as water scarcity and promoting development. The company currently has activity in the water sector in Latin America, USA, Algeria, Ghana, China, India and Spain.
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