BESIX confirms its role as a first choice industrial partner of public authorities for the implementation and long-term operations and maintenance of their infrastructures and buildings. Achievement of Financial Close of the Dubai Waste-to-Energy project on 21 June 2021, a 1.2 billion dollar public-private partnership, is a further demonstration of this.
Pierre Sironval, Deputy CEO of BESIX Group: “For several years now, BESIX has been consolidating its position as a leading player in the implementation of large and ambitious public-private partnerships, mainly for environmental and infrastructure projects. We continue to strengthen our position in this field year after year, convinced that the collaboration we offer to public authorities is a first choice solution for the efficient implementation and long-term management of their assets. We are doing this in the Middle East and Western Europe, and are now considering expanding to other regions of the world. Our strength lies in our ability to support public authorities at every stage of their projects, including our financing solutions, our in-house design office for design, our contracting capabilities for construction and, finally, our experts in long-term operations and maintenance.”
The example of the Dubai Waste-to-Energy project
The Dubai Waste-to-Energy plant, one of the world’s largest, was procured by Dubai Municipality. With an annual treatment capacity of 1.9 million tonnes of waste diverted from landfill, the project will generate 200 MW of electricity.
Olivier Crasson, General Manager of BESIX in the Middle East: “Dubai Waste-to-Energy is an example of which we are very proud: together with Dubai Municipality, Hitachi Zosen Inova and our valuable co-investors, we have conceived and engineered one of the most ambitious environmental projects in the Middle East and made it a reality. We designed it, today we are building it, and tomorrow we will operate and maintain it for 35 years. The Financial Close, for which on behalf of BESIX, I would like to thank all the partners, is a proof of the quality of this project and of our ability to accompany the public authorities as a long-term, reliable and solution-oriented partner.”
The equity investor consortium comprises leading private and public operators from the Middle East, Asia and Europe: Dubai Holding, DUBAL Holding, ITOCHU, HZI, BESIX and Tech Group.
The debt provider group comprises Japanese export credit agency Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) alongside international lenders Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, KFW IPEX-Bank GmbH, Mizuho Bank, Ltd, Siemens Bank GmbH, Société Générale, Standard Chartered Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation. Japanese export credit agency Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) provided loan insurance.
A growing portfolio of public-private partnerships
BESIX has a portfolio of first-class concessions in transport and marine infrastructure, water and waste treatment and sustainable energy production.
In the Middle East, the Dubai Waste-to-Energy project adds to BESIX's rapidly growing portfolio of environmental public-private partnerships. This includes infrastructure for wastewater management, treatment and valorisation, notably in Ajman via Ajman Sewerage and in Abu Dhabi with the ISTP2 venture. In addition to these projects, BESIX is actively involved in the region's first Refuse Derived Fuel installation in Umm Al Quwain, a sewage sludge treatment unit for the production of sustainable energy in Ajman and a unit for the transformation of landfill gas into sustainable energy in Dubai.
In Western Europe, BESIX provides long-term management of locks, including the Limmel Barrier and the Princess Beatrix Lock in the Netherlands, tunnels in Amsterdam and Brussels, and buildings, including the Antwerp police station in Belgium.