Ewec wants carbon-capture readiness for next gas power plant
17 April 2024
The request for proposals (RFPs) that will be issued for the next combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plant in Abu Dhabi will explicitly require the developers or developer consortiums to accommodate the installation of carbon-capture facilities once they are commercially viable.
"A key part of the RFP is to make a declaration that this project will be carbon-capture ready … that such facility will be installed as part of the project once carbon-capture solutions become commercially viable," Andy Biffen, executive director of asset development at Emirates Water & Electricity Company (Ewec), told the ongoing World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi.
As MEED previously reported, Ewec is considering issuing a tender in the next few weeks for its first gas-fired independent power producer (IPP) project since 2020.
The greenfield Taweelah C gas-fired IPP is planned to reach commercial operation by 2027, according to a recent Ewec capacity procurement statement.
"We understand that they might skip the expressions of interest and request for qualifications stage and directly invite qualified developers to bid for the contract," two sources familiar with the project previously told MEED.
The planned Taweelah C gas-fired IPP is expected to have a power generation capacity of 2,457MW.
Ewec awarded its last CCGT IPP nearly four years ago. Japan's Marubeni Corporation won the contract to develop the Fujairah F3 IPP in 2020.
The state utility is considering new gas-fired capacity in light of expiring capacity from several independent water and power producer (IWPP) facilities.
The plants that will reach the end of their existing contracts during the 2023-29 planning period include:
- Shuweihat S1 (1,615MW, 101 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD)): expires in June 2025
- Sas Al Nakhl (1,670MW, 95MIGD): expires in July 2027
- Taweelah B (2,220MW, 160MIGD): expires in October 2028
- Taweelah A1 (1,671MW, 85MIGD): expires in July 2029
Ewec and the developers and operators of these plants are expected to enter into discussions before the expiry of the contracts to decide whether a contract extension is possible. Unsuccessful negotiations will lead to the dismantling of the assets at the end of the contract period.
In 2022, MEED reported that Abu Dhabi had wound down the operation of Taweelah A2, the region's first IWPP. The power and water purchase agreement supporting the project expired in September 2021 and was not extended.
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Contractors compete for Riyadh airport Terminal 6 work2 November 2026

Contractors are preparing bids for the main construction contract for Terminal 6 at King Salman International airport (KSIA) in Riyadh.
MEED understands that the consortiums have been given until January to submit their proposals.
The participating consortiums are:
- Al-Gihaz Holding / TAV Construction / Webuild (local/Turkiye/Italy)
- Modern Building Leaders / Powerchina / Metallurgical Corporation of China (loca/China/China)
- UCC Holding / Consolidated Contractors Company (Qatar/Greece)
Last month, MEED exclusively reported that contractor teams have completed the early contractor involvement phase of the project.
Under the completed phase, the shortlisted teams submitted detailed construction methodologies and technical design proposals.
King Salman International Airport Development Company (KSIADC) is a subsidiary of Saudi sovereign wealth vehicle the Public Investment Fund.
Terminal 6 is planned to boost the airport’s annual capacity by 40 million passengers. KSIADC aims to complete the terminal ahead of Expo 2030 Riyadh.
In May 2025, MEED reported that US-based Bechtel had been appointed as delivery partner for the passenger terminals at KSIA.
UK-based Foster + Partners designed the masterplan, including the terminals, six parallel runways and a multi-asset real estate district.
US-based engineering firm Jacobs is providing specialist consultancy services for the masterplan and runway design, while UK-headquartered Mace is acting as delivery partner for the broader development. Local firm Nera secured the airspace design consultancy contract.
The KSIA project covers about 57 square kilometres (sq km) and incorporates the existing terminals at King Khalid International airport. The scheme will feature 12 sq km of airport support facilities, residential and recreational zones, retail assets and logistics parks.
The development is targeted to handle up to 120 million passengers a year by 2030 and 185 million passengers by 2050, in addition to an annual cargo throughput of 3.5 million tonnes by 2050.
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Contractors prepare bids for Morocco power line2 November 2026

Contractors are preparing bids for a 160-kilometre (km), 400kV transmission line linking Guercif and Fes East in Morocco, following a site visit on 1 October.
The project is being developed by the Office National de l'Electricite et de l'Eau Potable (Onee) to connect the Saka solar photovoltaic power plant to the national electricity grid.
According to sources, at least eight contractors attended the site visit last month, including:
- Butec (Lebanon)
- CEEC Northeast Electric No.2 (China)
- Cegelec (France)
- EPME Electric (Morocco)
- Hideleco (Egypt)
- Kec International (India)
- PowerChina (China)
- Transrail (India)
The project comprises two lots. The first involves a 90km transmission line between Guercif and Taza, while the second covers a 70km section between Taza and Fes East.
The scope of work includes the construction of tower foundations, installation of transmission supports and conductors, and associated high-voltage equipment. It also includes optical fibre cables for communications and monitoring, access roads and other supporting infrastructure.
The tender was issued in September with bids originally due by 21 October. The deadline has now been extended to 25 November.
The project is part of a wider programme by Onee to expand Morocco's electricity transmission network and accommodate additional renewable energy capacity.
In June, the utility commissioned a 274km, 400kV transmission line linking Chemaia and Mediouna, near Casablanca.
Onee plans to expand its high- and extra-high-voltage transmission network from more than 30,700km to 37,000km by 2030.
In August, it approved a $26.4bn investment programme for the 2026-30 period, covering electricity and drinking water infrastructure.
The programme has allocated about $21.9bn to electricity projects and $4.5bn to drinking water infrastructure, with about 72% of the investment to be financed by the private sector, according to Onee.
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Adnoc Onshore allows more time for Bab gas cap well tie-in bids2 November 2026

The onshore business of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc Onshore) has allowed contractors more time to prepare proposals for a project to tie in gas-producing and injection wells at the gas cap reservoirs of Abu Dhabi’s onshore Bab field.
The well tie-in scope, estimated to be worth more than $800m, forms part of Adnoc Group’s wider integrated Bab gas cap development programme.
The overall programme is being led and overseen by Adnoc Gas, another Adnoc Group subsidiary. Its central element is the construction of gas-processing infrastructure to handle incremental gas output expected from developing the Bab gas caps.
Adnoc Onshore issued the main tender for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on the project in late September, MEED previously reported.
Contractors have been given until 16 November to submit technical bids for the project, according to sources. The previous deadline was 29 October.
MEED previously reported that Adnoc Onshore issued an expressions of interest (EoI) notice for the Bab gas production and injector well tie-in project on 13 May, with contractors submitting responses by 20 May.
The scope of work on the project covers the following:
- Tie-in of 99 new wells from Bab gas cap reservoirs KH-2, SH-1 and LK-1 (60 gas producers and 39 gas injectors);
- Installation of well gathering structures: 10 gas pads, six well bays and three virtual pads;
- Installation of a gas gathering network and a gas injection network;
- Rerouting of the LK-3 production from the existing trunkline in Remote Manifold Station 3 (RMS-3) to the project’s production trunkline, Bab Gas TL-2;
- Demolition of the existing 10-inch trunkline from RMS-3 to onshore gas development phase one.
In the EoI document, Adnoc Onshore said it intends to award the EPC contract in the last quarter of the year, with a 45-month duration of works.
Bab gas cap project infrastructure
As part of its 2030 upstream production increase goals, Adnoc Group is working to extract gas from four underdeveloped gas cap reservoirs at the Bab onshore field development – Thammama A, Thammama B, Thammama F and Thammama H.
While the Thammama A, B and H reservoirs are estimated to collectively produce 1.45 billion cubic feet a day (cf/d) of gas, output from the Thammama F gas cap is expected to be at a rate of 396 million cf/d.
Existing trains at the Habshan processing complex in Abu Dhabi will be unable to handle the new gas volumes. Therefore, Adnoc Gas is required to build new facilities to process an additional volume of up to 1.85 billion cf/d of raw gas.
Adnoc Gas is planning to build a gas processing plant in the Bab area, about 170 kilometres from Abu Dhabi, along with associated pipeline networks and other ancillary units, as part of the broader Bab gas cap development project. It has divided the EPC scope of work on the project into four packages:
- EPC package 1 – Main Bab gas cap plant
- EPC package 2 – Early civil works
- EPC package 3 – Pipelines
- EPC package 4 – Non-process area works
Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange-listed Adnoc Gas issued the tender for the main Bab gas cap plant on 25 June and set an initial deadline of 17 July for contractors to submit technical bids. The company then extended the technical bid submission deadline by four months, until 16 November, MEED previously reported.
Following a reshuffle of the consortiums gearing up to bid for the main Bab gas plant EPC package, estimated to be worth more than $6bn, the following teams have formed to compete in the main contract tendering round:
- Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India) + Petrofac Emirates (UAE)
- Technip Energies (France) + JGC Corporation (Japan) + Sinopec (China)
- Tecnimont (Italy) + China Petroleum Engineering and Construction Corporation (CPECC)
The other three packages of the Bab gas cap project are also in the main contract tendering stages.
Prior to issuing the EoIs for the project packages, Adnoc Gas completed an early engagement process with contractors in September and October last year, as MEED previously reported.
In December last year, Adnoc Gas awarded the front-end engineering and design (feed) works for the development project to Australia-based consultancy Worley. The feed contract has a duration of more than 1.2 million man-hours, making it the largest-ever engineering job awarded by Adnoc Gas.
Bab Gas Cap concession
In addition to Adnoc Gas overseeing the main EPC tendering exercise for the gas processing plant, Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs (SCFEA) awarded concession agreements in June for the development and production of the Bab gas cap reserve.
Adnoc will hold the majority 60% participating interest in the concession. The remaining stakes will be held by France’s TotalEnergies (10%), the UK’s BP (10%), China National Petroleum Corporation International (8%), Japan Oil Development Company Onshore (5%), China ZhenHua Oil (4%) and Korea GS E&P (3%).
According to the SCFEA, the Bab gas cap development and production concession represents the largest gas cap development project of its kind globally, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said in a report.
A gas cap refers to the free natural gas that sits above an underlying oil reservoir – in this case, the Bab onshore oil field in Abu Dhabi.
The project, operated by Adnoc Onshore, is expected to have a production capacity of approximately 1.5 billion cf/d of natural gas, equivalent to about 15% of Adnoc Gas’ total operational gas processing capacity.
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Bahrain’s Gateway Gulf brings $20bn of deals2 November 2026
More than 110 announcements worth over $20bn will be made at the Gateway Gulf Investment Forum in Bahrain, according to the country's finance minister.
"Over the next two days at Gateway Gulf, more than 110 announcements worth over $20bn will be made," Sheikh Salman Bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa, Finance & National Economy Minister, said at the opening of the forum's fourth edition on 1 November in Bahrain.
He said the announcements will cover new partnerships, investments, projects and jobs. Sheikh Salman addressed an audience that included Bahrain's Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa.
The minister said the region's economies have been "tested as never before" since the previous edition of the forum a year earlier.
"In the face of unprecedented attacks, we did not waver," he said. He added that Bahrain has chosen to work more closely with its allies and partners to defend what it has built.
Sheikh Salman said the Gulf economy has grown to $2.4tn in GDP. Non-oil sectors account for more than 86% of Bahrain's GDP and more than 77% across the Gulf, he said.
He said Gulf banks hold more than $4tn in assets, while the region's sovereign wealth funds manage more than $5tn of investments. "These numbers describe a region that has chosen to build a more stable, a more prosperous future for its people," he said. "Bahrain is the gateway to that region."
The minister said Bahrain is focusing on regulation, infrastructure and people to attract investment.
He said the country has developed a regulatory framework over several decades that is "clear, modern and fast", allowing investors to commit with confidence.
On infrastructure, he highlighted logistics, connectivity, digital networks and industrial land as areas where Bahrain is building the foundations for businesses to expand. He also named finance, logistics, tourism, manufacturing, technology and telecommunications, and oil and gas as the sectors into which he expects domestic, regional and international capital to flow.
He said the investments will create jobs for young graduates and support the growth of family businesses.
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Egypt’s Petrojet wins gas pipeline project worth $170m2 November 2026

An onshore gas pipeline contract awarded to Egypt’s Petrojet has a value of $170m, according industry sources.
The pipeline will connect to Egypt’s Damietta liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal and is part of a broader project to develop gas reserves in Cyprus and export the gas using infrastructure in Egypt.
Recently, several contracts have been signed in relation to the project, which is being developed by Italian oil and gas company Eni.
These include US-based Baker Hughes signing a contract for the design, procurement and construction of subsea production systems, including associated equipment and control systems.
Italy's Dalmine will supply subsea gas export and monoethylene glycol pipelines, while US-listed TechnipFMC will design, procure and manufacture flexible gas production pipelines.
In September, it was announced that US-headquartered McDermott will carry out offshore work for the project, including the transportation, installation and connection of subsea pipelines and equipment.
In a statement released on 26 October, Eni said: “The development will leverage a fast-track approach based on regional integration and the use of existing infrastructure.
“Gas produced from Cronos will be transported to Egypt, where it will be processed through existing facilities, including the Zohr infrastructure, before being liquefied at the Damietta LNG plant for export to international markets, primarily Europe.”
Gas production is expected to come online in the first half of 2028.
Since the US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February, sparking a regional conflict, there has been increased interest in oil and gas assets in North African countries such as Egypt.
The ongoing conflict has made exporting oil and gas through the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab El-Mandeb Strait more difficult due to attacks on shipping.
Unlike many Middle East nations, Egypt, Algeria and Libya do not need to use these export routes and can continue to ship oil and gas without disruption.
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