Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC) has announced the prequalification of 41 global and regional firms for its independent water plant (IWP) projects and 53 firms for its independent sewage treatment plant (ISTP) projects.

This follows the launch of the ‘Pre-Qualification Programme’ in May – a key initiative from SWPC aimed at facilitating and expediting tendering procedures through the establishment of a permanent list of prequalified developers.

Of the more than 100 developers who applied for the prequalification for IWP projects with capacity higher than 300,000 cu m per day, only 41 have made it to the prequalifiers list, SWPC said. They include global giants such as Acwa Power, Acciona Agua, Cobra, GS Inima, Marubeni and Veolia Middle East and regional heavyweights Orascom Construction, Alghanim, Al Kifah Holding Company and Utico.

On ISTP projects, SWPC said of the more than 100 developers, only 53 have made it to the prequalifiers list for projects with capacity equal to 150,000 cu m per day or lower than that.

A key initiative, the Pre-Qualification Programme also gives the private sector sufficient time to form consortia, thereby enhancing competition for SWPC’s future projects, it added. Once the pool of prequalified developers is ready, the request for proposals (RFPs) for these projects will be issued directly to them.