A group led by China’s Sepco III Electric Power Construction has made the lowest bid of $2.44 billion to build a 2,400 megawatt power plant in Saudi Arabia, two industry sources said Saturday.
The group, which also includes Saudi Arabia’s Al-Arrab Contracting, is bidding for the project in Ras Azzour, on the Gulf coast. The project is integrated with a water desalination facility with a daily capacity of over 1 million cubic meters.
A $2.86 billion bid from Spain’s Iberdrola and Saudi partner Arabian Bemco Contracting came second, a source said, declining to be identified.
South Korea’s Doosan Heavy Industries came third with a bid of $2.91 billion while South Korean Hyundai Engineering & Construction bid with Siemens and Saudi Services for Electro Mechanic Works at $3.7 billion, two sources said.
Japan’s Sasakura Engineering, with South Korea’s Samsung Engineering, had made the lowest bid of $1.89 billion to build the desalination plant.
Fuhaid bin Fahd Al-Sharif, governor of the state-controlled Saline Water Conversion (SWCC), said in October the cost of the giant power and desalination project is expected to be 20-25 percent below initial estimates.
The project had been estimated to cost $6 billion. SWCC will take 1 billion liters of the plant’s water production.
Saudi Arabian Mining (Maaden) would take 1,350 MW and 1,050 MW would be allocated to Saudi Electricity.