Expansion of Kaunas’ supply networks, Lithuania

For Kaunas with 380,000 inhabitants, Fichtner planned expansion and partial rehabilitation of the water supply mains and sewer system. The task covered tie-in into existing municipal systems and planning of drinking water and sewage pumping stations, distribution networks and sewer systems in four city planning districts. Preparation of tender documents and contract award followed the EU’s rules set out in its Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession (ISPA), and complied with FIDIC contractual conditions.

Rehabilitation and expansion planning of Satu Mare’s drinking water and sanitation systems, Romania

In preparation for Romania’s EU accession, drinking water and sanitation facilities in the town of Satu Mare were refurbished. Fichtner drew up four construction tenders for the following components: a) Rehabilitation of 7.3 km wellfield pipelines (DN 600 and DN 800), with drilling and equipping of 15 drinking water wells; b) Rehabilitation with capacity reduction of the drinking water purification plant; c) Rehabilitation of sewage treatment plant; and d) Rehabilitation of 14 km of sewers and seven pumping stations. Consultancy services included various measures to ensure efficient facility operation as well as procurement of equipment and cleaning vehicles.

Technical consultancy for a municipal water project, Morocco

Within the framework of a project financed by the African Development Bank, rural drinking water supply in four provinces of Morocco is to be upgraded. For this purpose, measures for water extraction, transmission and distribution as well as for educating the population in hygiene in connection with drinking water and sanitation are implemented. In three towns, a total of 350,000 inhabitants are being connected to the sanitation system and new wastewater treatment plants are being constructed. Fichtner Water & Transportation was awarded a contract by the Office National de l'Eau Potable (ONEP) to review the planning and tender documents, evaluate bids and for site supervision.

Technical support for extending water supply, Tunisia

The aim of this project, financed by KfW, is to upgrade drinking water quality in South Tunisia through decentralized supply with several small-scale facilities to serve a total population of around 340,000. Ten desalination plants are to be constructed to treat brackish groundwater, nine of which are to work on the principle of reverse osmosis and one with electrodialysis technology. Fichtner was retained to assist the national water authority, Société Nationale d’Exploitation et de Distribution des Eaux (SONEDE), with a review of the tender documents, organizing bidders’ site visits, shop acceptances, site supervision and acceptance of the constructed plants and systems.

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Review of technical performance of the private water supply system operator, Ghana

In connection with privatization of municipal water supplies in Ghana, a private operator was awarded a management contract to administer and operate the eighty water supply systems, distributed throughout the country, of the Ghana Water Company Ltd., with a total capacity of over 785,000 m³/d and almost 450,000 premises connections. With the object of reviewing the performance of the private operator during the five-year period of the contract, Fichtner was entrusted with conducting the technical audit against the agreed performance standards. These cover drinking water quality, water pressure and flow rates, cutting water losses and compliance with the stipulated average daily production of drinking water.

Renovation of Mbuji-Mayi’s drinking water system, Democratic Republic of Congo

Mbuji-Mayi’s drinking water system suffered from major leakage losses and also the available water flows fell far short of the increased demand. After a survey of existing conditions, Fichtner redesigned the water supply system for the population of 2.75 million. This covered all measures from source enclosure and cross-country water transfer to storage and distribution in the primary network. To safeguard power supplies for all the water supply system’s electrical consumers, Fichtner engineered a 6.6 MW hydropower plant, prepared a feasibility study for this, drew up the tender documents and provided site supervision during its construction.

 Rehabilitation and expansion of Goreangab Water Reclamation Plant, Namibia

To secure drinking water supply to Windhoek, Goreangab Water Reclamation Plant at Gammans Dam was renovated and expanded. In parallel to the existing treatment plant, a new purification train of 25,000 m³/d capacity was erected for treating surface water from the reservoir. The special feature of this was the possibility of directly processing effluent from Gammans Wastewater Treatment Plant to water of drinking quality, so providing a water supply even during drought. This makes this facility the only direct wastewater reclamation plant for obtaining drinking water worldwide. Apart from conventional filtration and chlorination technologies, membrane, activated carbon, ozone and flotation processes found application. Fichtner was lead company of an international joint venture, drew up all planning documents and supervised tendering, construction and commissioning of the plant.

Upgrading water supply and sanitation in Mbeya, Tanzania

In the regional capital of Mbeya in the southern highlands of Tanzania, water supply and sanitation facilities are to be upgraded. With the aim of cutting drinking water losses and extending the distribution system, the EU and KfW are financing, under the communal water supply project “Mbeya Phase II”, rehabilitation and new construction of installations and systems. After devising the required measures within the framework of a feasibility study, Fichtner drew up the tender documents, evaluated proposals and assisted during contract award. Furthermore, Fichtner is providing site supervision and project management as well as working out supporting measures for institutional strengthening and sustainable project implementation.

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Consultancy services for construction of an RO desalination plant, Mauritius

Under contract to the Ministry of Local Development and Waste Treatment, Fichtner drew up tender documents for constructing a seawater desalination plant. This applied reverse osmosis (RO) technology, and comprised two trains, each with a capacity of 2000 m³ drinking water per day. For the plant to be erected on Rodrigues Island, Fichtner also aided the Ministry in site investigations and bid evaluation and submitted a contract award recommendation.

Reform strategy for Punjab’s municipal drinking water supply and sanitation, Pakistan

To upgrade drinking water supply in the major cities of the Province of Punjab, the Pakistani Government has set up a reform program for guidelines and institutions in this sector. Under this program, Fichtner investigated options for upgrading the effectiveness of drinking water supply and sanitation services by entering into contractual agreements and public-private partnerships as well as providing financial incentives. On the basis of the assessment of these options, rules for fixing utilization costs were prepared, and measures for monitoring the quality of water supply and sanitation services defined. These standards make an important contribution to improving the quality of life in Pakistan’s most highly populated province.

Engineering and construction of a seawater desalination plant with overland water pipeline in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates

In Fujairah, a hybrid seawater desalination plant for meeting drinking water demand was erected, designed for a total capacity of 455,000 m³/day drinking water, with 63% produced thermally and 37% by reverse osmosis, from seawater with a salt concentration of ~40g/l. The drinking water is transported via a 185 km overland pipeline of diameter 1600 mm to Al-Ain (80 MIGD) and Al-Dhaid (20 MIGD). The main pumping station has a delivery of 18,750 m³/h with 12,000 kW power uptake. Following the power and water demand study, Fichtner prepared the planning documents, drew up the specifications and tender documents, assisted contract award, and supervised construction and commissioning of the plant components. Fichtner has since handled extension of the plant by a further 100 MIGD.

Al Khobar II and III dual-purpose power and desalination plants, Saudi Arabia

Under contract to the Saudi Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC), Fichtner has assisted over 30 years in construction and expansion of Al Khobar II and III dual-purpose power and desalination plants. As early as in the 70s, Fichtner was entrusted with all planning steps, from basic engineering to preliminary takeover by the client. Alongside the seawater desalination plant, Al Khobar II comprises five power generating units with a total rating of 725 MWe and also a housing compound for 2500 inhabitants. The seawater desalination plant of Al Khobar II comprises ten multi-stage flash (MSF) trains with a total production of 225,000 m³ drinking water per day. For distributing this drinking water, Fichtner planned a water pipeline network with over 250 km of main and branch pipelines. Even while Al Khobar II was still being constructed, Fichtner was commissioned to plan its extension – Al Khobar III. Like Al Khobar II, this is a steam turbine power plant fired with natural gas and residual oil with seawater desalination plant, for a total power plant rating of 500 MWe and desalination capacity, likewise through MSF plants, of 273,000 m³/day drinking water. During planning of the extension, Fichtner also specified an RO plant with a planned desalination capacity of 91,000 m³/day, but this was not constructed.

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Planning a seawater desalination plant and site supervision, Singapore

Fichtner was commissioned over several stages by the Public Utilities Board, Singapore, with planning a dual-purpose power and desalination plant for supplying Singapore with drinking water. The first stage comprised a feasibility study for erecting the plant with a capacity of 90,000 m³ drinking water per day and an electrical rating of 200 to 300 MW. Within the framework of this investigation, a range of desalination technologies were examined with regard to performance and operating economics. Also investigated were various siting options and BOO/BOT schemes, and the anticipated production costs were determined. Following the decision to adopt the Build-Own-Operate (BOO) model, Fichtner assisted the Board during tendering, contract formulation and contract award. During the construction phase, Fichtner was entrusted with project management and site supervision up to commissioning.

Seawater desalination at the Gold Coast, Australia

South East Queensland is one of the driest regions of Australia. As part of an A$9bn investment by the Queensland Government and the Gold Coast City Council to improve the drinking water supply, the first large seawater desalination plant on Australia’s East Coast is being erected in Tugun on the Gold Coast on a former landfill site. This plant with reverse osmosis technology has a capacity of 125,000 m3/d. Fichtner was awarded a contract for reviewing the reference design, checking drawings, site supervision and coordination of commissioning.

RO seawater desalination plant, Sydney, Australia

Throughout the entire project for developing “Sydney’s Desalination Plant”, Fichtner, in collaboration with the Australian consultants GHD Services Pty. Ltd., provided technical support to the local utility, Sydney Water. This comprised initially preparing a planning study on the possibilities and potentials for complementing the city’s drinking water supply by the desalination of seawater, for which purpose technologies and development options, infrastructure requirements and connection possibilities as well as environmental impacts were investigated. This was followed by conceptual planning for the design of the 250,000 m³/d reverse osmosis seawater desalination plant with all components. As consultants responsible for the design, Fichtner prepared the entire plant layout and detail planning, drew up the specifications and tender documents, and oversaw bid evaluation and contract award. For plant erection, Fichtner reviewed the planning as well as supervised execution of the works and commissioning up to acceptance inspections and performance trials.

Investigation of candidate technologies and BOO/BOT models for seawater desalination in Perth, Australia

Under contract to the Water Corporation of Perth, Fichtner prepared a feasibility study for supplying Perth with desalinated drinking water. This comprehensive investigation included a comparison of various desalination technologies – multi-stage flash (MSF), multiple effect distillation (MED) and reverse osmosis (RO) – that were considered under the aspects of performance, drinking water quality, potential sites, environmental impacts and operating economy for the local conditions and an estimated capacity of 100,000 m³/day. Within this framework, additionally a preliminary plant layout was developed and tie-in of the plant into the existing drinking water pipeline network investigated. Then Fichtner recommended the further procedure. Following selection of the technology and the site, the examinations were repeated in greater depth, and anticipated production costs and water tariffs of the selected RO plant calculated. Furthermore, Fichtner supported the Water Corporation in preparing the environmental impact assessment and project development. For this, the possibilities of private or public operation of the plant were compared. Fichtner also drew up the tender documents and advised the Water Corporation on contract award and selection of plant suppliers as well as contract formulation. Fichtner has since been taken on as Owner’s Engineer.

You can find other examples of seawater desalination projects under Dual-purpose desalination and power plants.

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Upgrading San Salvador’s drinking water supply system, El Salvador

With the objective of upgrading drinking water supply in the northern sector of San Salvador, Beller Consult was awarded a contract by Administración Nacional de Acueductos y Alcantarillados (ANDA) for planning and construction management of various measures. These included the required expansion of pumping stations and reinforcement of the main transportation pipelines between water extraction and the water tanks providing the in-feed points into the distribution network, as well as reinforcing the water tanks themselves. Rehabilitation and expansion of the drinking water system includes renewal of hydraulic and electrical installations at twelve pumping stations, construction of six new main transportation pipelines with distribution network, rehabilitation of two drinking water purification plants, rehabilitation and construction of new water tanks of reinforced concrete as well as sinking of deep wells. Additionally, a section of the existing water supply pipeline, transporting 40% of the capital’s drinking water, was re-laid.

Monitoring of water/sanitation management contracts, Nicaragua

The contract for management of the water supply and sanitation companies AMAT in Mantagalpa and EMAJIN in Jinotega was awarded to a private company in September 2004. In order to obtain an assessment of the degree of compliance with the contractual obligations such as improvement in the operation of the service infrastructure and of the system, improvement in administration and organization, improvement in the financial results and transfer of know-how, Fichtner was contracted to perform an independent and cyclical review of the results of these management activities over a period of five years. The service territory of the two water supply and sanitation companies comprises 13 local authorities with around 212,000 inhabitants and some 33,000 service connections.

Planning and construction of the Lindau - Wittenberg Overland Pipeline, Germany

To ensure drinking water supply in Wittenberg, a 42 km pipeline was laid to the town from Lindau Waterworks. Other project components were a pumping station of 2 x 500 m³/h delivery as well as storage and equalization tanks of 4000 m³ capacity. Pipeline sections were of steel and cast iron, with diameters of 400 and 500 mm. WTL Wassertechnik of the Fichtner Group handled the project from start to finish, drew up planning documents, specifications and tender documents, assisted during contract award, and supervised construction and commissioning of components.

Study on restructuring of the regional water supply, including tariff study and supply concept in eastern Thuringia, Germany

For the long-distance water supply in the German state of Thuringia, Fichtner rendered consultancy services for improving the economic efficiency of the regional water supply. In the first phase of the project, Fichtner analyzed three companies responsible for the regional water supply, demonstrated the potential for optimization and drew up proposals for reorganization and amalgamation. During the project, Fichtner also investigated whether the previous price of untreated water from the reservoirs was reasonable and developed a forecast of the future movement in prices. In the second phase of the project, following the amalgamation of two of the three partners investigated, Fichtner devised a technical-economic supply concept for the new company which is intended to serve as a business plan for the next five years and to form the commercial basis for long-distance water supply in northern and eastern Thuringia.

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