The Rayis Rabigh Project, led by Tedagua, wins the award for best public-private partnership
- Rayis-Rabigh is a 151-kilometer hydraulic infrastructure with a diameter of over 2 meters and a pumping capacity of 500,000 m³/day.
- The project, led by Tedagua (Grupo Cobra), received the award for best public-private partnership (PPP deal), recognizing it as one of the pioneering and most significant projects in the Middle East region.
On February 20th, the PFI Awards 2024 ceremony was held in London, which annually recognizes the best financial success stories worldwide. This year, the Rayis-Rabigh IWTP (Independent Water Transmission Project), led by Tedagua through its parent company Grupo Cobra and in consortium with the Saudi company Alkhorayef Water and Power Technologies, won the award for best public-private partnership (PPP deal).
The project involves the construction and operation for 35 years of the water transport infrastructure between Rayis and Rabigh in Saudi Arabia for the public company Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC), which is responsible for developing and managing public-private partnerships in the water sector. The hydraulic infrastructure will connect the industrial complexes of both towns located north of Jeddah, allowing the distribution of desalinated water to the regions of Mecca and Medina through a 151-kilometer-long carbon steel pipeline with a diameter of over 2 meters. Additionally, it will feature a reversible pumping system with a capacity of 500,000 m³/day, two 170,000 m³ reservoirs, and a 13 MW photovoltaic park.
One of the main merits of the project is that it is a pioneering concession contract in the region, being the first time, a water transport pipeline system of this magnitude is developed under the BOOT scheme in the Middle East. Furthermore, it becomes a crucial axis in the concessional development of water infrastructure that the Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC) promotes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, paving the way for similar contracts expected to emerge in the coming years to shape the National Water Strategy and the 2030 Agenda.
The award was received by Javier Hidalgo González, CEO of Tedagua, and representatives from Grupo Cobra, Alkhorayef, and SWPC who were present at the PFI Awards ceremony.
For Cobra, as the leader of the concession, and Tedagua, as the leader of the EPC and O&M, the Rayis-Rabigh IWTP is a strategic project to strengthen their presence in the country, boost technological development, and continue collaborating on emblematic projects to achieve sustainable development goals in comprehensive water infrastructure.