NATIONAL Central Cooling Company (Tabreed), the Abu Dhabi-based district cooling utility company, will inject more funds into its Saudi affiliate, Saudi Tabreed, to develop a Dh549-million ($149 million) district cooling project that will serve the Jabal Omar development in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

The investment is for the development and construction of the first two phases of the district cooling plant. Saudi Tabreed, which is 25 per cent owned by Tabreed, is partnering with the Saudi-based Jabal Omar Development Company (JODC) to develop the 55,000 tons of refrigeration (TR) project.

The 20-year build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) agreement will be completed by a special purpose vehicle named Central District Cooling Company (CDCC). CDCC is 60 per cent owned by Saudi Tabreed and 40 per cent owned by JODC.

The first two phases of the district cooling project in the Jabal Omar development are expected to be completed in approximately 18 months, and have a contracted capacity of 35,900 TR.

In addition to the Jabal Omar development, Saudi Tabreed is also currently involved in two other major projects in Saudi Arabia. The company is in the final stages of completing the construction of a district cooling plant for Aramco that has a design capacity of 32,000 TR on a BOOT contract for 23 years, and is also completing the second phase of a district cooling plant in the King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD).

Upon completion in 2013, the KAFD plants will have a total capacity of 100,000 TR.

In another development, Drake and Scull International (DSI) has secured a mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) package award for Phase Three of the Jabal Omar Development.The latest order brings the total value of projects it has secured in the fourth quarter of 2012 to Dh3 billion ($816.7 million).

DSI is a regional market leader in the integrated design, engineering and construction disciplines of MEP, water and power, rail and oil and gas.