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Decision imminent on Iraq waste-to-energy project

1 May 2024

 

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The bid evaluation process for the contract to develop a waste-to-energy (WTE) plant in the Al Nahrawan area of Baghdad Governorate is expected to be completed shortly.

"It will be clear next week," a source close to the project tells MEED, without providing further details such as the names of the bidders.

The plant will have the capacity to treat 3,000 tonnes of waste a day and generate nearly 80 megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity.

It will be developed using a design-build-own-operate model.

MEED previously reported that Iraq's National Investment Commission (NIC), in coordination with the Municipality of Baghdad, the Ministry of Electricity and the Ministry of Environment, is evaluating the proposals for the contract.

MEED understands NIC received 13 bids for the contract on 31 March.

An NIC spokesperson told MEED that 17 companies purchased the tender documents in January. 

NIC has not issued the list of prequalified companies that can bid for the contract.

According to NIC, power generation "from mixed solid waste must be with high-efficiency and at least fourth-generation grate incineration technology with an electrical power generation efficiency higher than 30% and a landfill rate less than 5%".

NIC invited investors and developers to qualify for the WTE scheme in August last year.

In October, it was reported that some 42 companies had expressed interest or were prequalified to bid for Iraq's planned WTE contracts.

WTE projects worth roughly $2bn are being planned in the Middle East, according to MEED Projects data.

Construction works are under way for the $1.2bn WTE project located in a former landfill site in Warsan in Dubai.

The concession agreement for Abu Dhabi's first WTE project in Al Dhafra was signed on 27 March.

The capacity of the planned facility in Baghdad is comparable with that of the Dhafra WTE project, which can treat 900,000 tonnes of solid waste a year.

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Jennifer Aguinaldo

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