Marubeni has signed a joint-venture agreement with Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) and Saudi Aramco to develop a greenfield cogeneration power and water desalination project in Saudi Arabia.

Taqa and Marubeni will operate the plants for 20 years on a build, own, operate and transfer (BOOT) basis. The project will supply electricity, steam and desalinated water to Saudi Aramco’s nearby oil and gas facilities. 

A special-purpose vehicle has been created to develop the plants with Taqa and Marubeni holding a 60% stake and Saudi Aramco owning 40%.

The Tanajib Cogeneration and Desalination Project will have a net capacity of 940 megawatts (MW) of power generation, 1,084 tonnes per hour of steam and 4.3 million imperial gallons per day (MIGD) of desalinated water (gross capacity: 5.25 MIGD). 

“Taqa is pleased to partner with Marubeni and Saudi Aramco on a project of such strategic importance to the Kingdom," says Taqa Group's executive director of generation Farid Al-Awlaqi. "The Tanajib facility will utilize Taqa’s expertise in delivering efficient power and water projects, as well as further strengthening our capabilities in operations and maintenance through a 40% stake in the [operations and maintenance] company."

Taqa has committed to expand its generation capacity by up to 15 gigawatts internationally by 2030. The Tanajib project is a move towards achieving that goal, while expanding the company's existing footprint in Saudi Arabia, he adds.

Marubeni and Taqa will develop the supporting infrastructure including pipelines to connect the desalination and cogeneration plants to end-users, which include a major industrial facility. Taqa is one of the largest listed integrated utility companies in the EMEA region. Its shares trade on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange.