RAK commissions AED 75 million water project for Al Ghail

55 km pipeline will provide water through one of the most difficult terrains in the country

Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, September 28, 2015: The Al Ghail district of Ras Al Khaimah will receive uninterrupted water following the commissioning of a 55-km water transmission line this week by Utico, the leading independent utilities provider in the GCC.

The pipeline, built at a total cost of AED 75 million, is considered as a challenging engineering feat due to the difficult terrain and the huge cost and challenge for pumping water from the sea to the city point at an elevation of 290 metres (965 feet). The project has started to provide much-needed water to an estimated 50,000 residents, farmlands and enterprises of the Al Ghail district and will support growth in the region.

Mr. Richard Menezes, Utico’s Managing Director, said that the project has a peak capacity of around 7 million gallons of desalinated water per day with the expansion possibility of another 10 MGD. “The commissioning of the project marks another milestone in the development of Ras Al Khaimah and will have a significant social and economic impact on the region. The construction of the water infrastructure for Al Ghail was not an easy task but we achieved this without a single lost time incident,” he added.

The water supply line project also includes distribution network of another 60 km. The entire project includes storage tanks, pumping stations and bowser points and related works. Al Ghail city has about 50,000 inhabitants, farmlands and Al Ghail Industrial City, one of the fastest growing industrial parks in the country and is owned by the Ras Al Khaimah Industrial Authority (RAKIA).

Utico as a full service provider provides water and power below government tariffs and does not have any government subsidies or government capital. It is a pro-consumer, environmentally friendly service provider which keeps pro-active sustainability as part of its growth philosophy.

The pipeline was laid according to the instructions of the RAK Government and included crossing 12 hillsides and sand dunes as well as co-ordination and permits from the Federal Electricity and Water Authority (FEWA), TRANSCO, Ministry of Defence, Etisalat, RAKGas, among others, who co-operated to the utmost extent to enable the successful completion of this transmission line.