Tabreed’s Unit Plans Dhs549m District Cooling Plant in Saudi

Abu Dhabi-based National Central Cooling Company (Tabreed) announced that its Saudi Arabian affiliate, Saudi Tabreed, will develop a Dhs549 million district cooling project in Mecca.

The investment relates to the development and construction of the first two phases of the district cooling plant, which will be located in the Jabal Omar development, the utility said in a statement.

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 RT project.

The 20-year ‘Build-Own-Operate-Transfer’ agreement will be completed by a special purpose vehicle named Central District Cooling Company, said Tabreed.

The first two phases of the project are expected to be completed in approximately 18 months, and have a contracted capacity of 35,900 RT.

Jasim Thabet, CEO of Tabreed, said: “The Jabal Omar project is one of the key infrastructure projects in Saudi Arabia and is intended to cater to Mecca’s expanding population.

“As cities in the GCC continue to grow, district cooling’s energy and cost efficiencies have proven to be the ideal solution for densely populated areas that have a high demand for year-round air conditioning.”

Saudi Tabreed is also currently involved in two other major projects in Saudi Arabia, the statement said.

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 RT on a ‘Build-Own-Operate-Transfer’ contract for 23 years.

It 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 RT.