The Dow Chemical Company has been chosen to supply water nanofiltration technology to the Ha’il nanofiltration (NF) plant by the Ministry of Water & Electricity in Saudi Arabia.
This plant, expected to come online in the second half of 2010, will be the first NF plant in the Kingdom, and the largest in the Middle East.
Dow’s technology will filter radioactive agents in the naturally occurring fresh water wells underground in Ha’il at a rate of 150,000 m³/d – enough to supply the daily clean water needs of 500,000 to 750,000 residents.
The award now makes Dow the first and only supplier of water nanofiltration technology in the Kingdom, and is the outcome of two years of testing and innovative technology development by Dow Water & Process Solutions (DW&PS). DOWTM FilmTecTM Nanofiltration NF90-400 elements will be supplied through distribution partner Abu Nayyan Trading Company to the original equipment manufacturer, EMCO.
Clean underground fresh water resources in Ha’il are diminishing. Water that naturally seeps back into the wells is contaminated with various naturally-occurring underground heavy metals and minerals, such as radium. When government health authorities started to notice an increase in water-related health concerns, they related it to this underground leaching.
In 2008, Dow and the Ministry of Water and Electricity installed the first NF plant with a capacity of 25,000 m³/d using FilmTec™ NF90-400 elements. It is expected to be fully online by the end of 2009, and the 150,000 m³/d plant will come online by the end of 2010.
Lance D Johnson, global water commercial director for Dow Water & Process Solutions, said, “This is an inspiring example of private and public sector collaboration for the common benefit of the public. Dow’s advanced water treatment technologies are in place all over the world, but the kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a key market for us.”