Dubai awards deal for region's first hydroelectric power station to France’s EDF

The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has awarded a AED 58 million consultancy contract for the pumped-storage hydroelectric power station at Hatta Dam to French electric utility company EDF.

The consultancy contract covers design, hydro-geological, geological, environmental, geotechnical, and deep excavation studies for the first of its kind project in the Arabian Gulf.

The contract also includes consultancy on deep-water tunnel designs, the dam and hydroelectric power station, the tender for material supply, supervision of construction work, site installation, on-site testing and commissioning.

The hydroelectric power station will have a total capacity of 250 megawatt (MW), and is expected to last between 60 years and 80 years.

"The hydroelectric plant costs AED 1.92 billion. It is part of the Hatta Comprehensive Development Plan," Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of DEWA, said.

The hydroelectric power station will generate electricity by using the water stored in the Hatta Dam – which can store up to 1,716 million gallons – and an upper reservoir that will be built in the mountain with a capacity to store up to 880 million gallons.

The upper reservoir will be 300 meters above the dam level, the agency said.

During non-peak hours, turbines that use clean and cheap solar energy will pump water from the lower dam to the upper reservoir.

During peak-load hours, when production costs are high, turbines operated by the speed of waterfall from the upper reservoir will be used to generate electricity and connect it to DEWA’s grid.

The efficiency of power production will reach 90 percent with a 90-second response to demand for electricity, DEWA said.