Al-Kuwari: KAHRAMAA Has Succeeded in Achieving Water and Energy Security, And Our Projects Have Not been Affected By The Blockade
During the past three years, the Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation "KAHRAMAA" has relentlessly achieved milestone after milestone in its chartered path towards success despite the unjust blockade imposed on our beloved country Qatar. KAHRAMAA has accomplished greatly at all levels. It launched a number of initiatives, raised the efficiency levels of its networks to better serve all sectors of the state, developed strategic plans, excelled in customer services, won a number of local and international awards and garnered international acclaim.
His Excellency Eng. Essa bin Hilal Al-Kuwari, President of KAHRAMAA stated, "Our wise leadership was keen to proceed with development plans despite any challenges, and the state succeeded in overcoming the negative effects of the blockade and in advancing steadily towards achieving the goals of the Qatar National Vision 2030 despite the ongoing unjust blockade imposed on the State of Qatar, which just marked its third year.
Thanks to the support of our wise government, KAHRAMAA succeeded in achieving water and energy security, and its projects were not affected by the blockade. It succeeded in moving forward in the implementation of strategic and vital projects and completing them according to schedule and with the highest quality standards. KAHRAMAA was also able to overcome the impact of the blockade and fulfill its obligations to maintain uninterruptable services and achieve water and energy security, and that without any additional given the fact that all strategic plans and all its work are based on risk management and the principle of economic innovation. KAHRAMAA has been devoted to providing alternatives from the local market and localizing the industries related to the electricity and water sectors, by supporting national companies, and giving priority and preference to local products”.
Moreover, KAHRAMAA has made significant achievements in the electricity and water sector locally, regionally, and globally. The performance indicators of the power grid are considered the best among Arab countries and the world in terms of reliability, keeping pace with urban development and providing an attractive infrastructure for investment. The State of Qatar has the highest electricity reserve among Arab states, especially with the inauguration of the Umm Al Houl power plant, which increased the production capacity of the State of Qatar by about 30% of electricity and 40% of water. This contributes to securing the requirements of the economic and urban renaissance taking place in the State of Qatar thanks to the wise leadership and its eagerness to secure the requirements of sustainable development.
Kahramaa has also raised the efficiency of the power grid with its various voltages by implementing periodic maintenance programs. The technical performance indicators for electricity transmission and distribution networks have registered unprecedented levels in the history of the Corporation, despite the significant increase in the number of customers, the expansion of the power grid and the marked increase in the network components. KAHRAMAA also successfully connected the “ezab” to the power grid, thus providing them with electricity with the aim of achieving sustainable service.
Completing Vital Projects According To Schedule
The unjust blockade did not affect the progress of KAHRAMAA’s major projects implemented that serve the various development undertakings in the country. KAHRAMAA succeeded in completing the commissioning of all five substations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup stadiums at a cost of about 800 million riyals, whereby the last substation was inaugurated in May 2019. KAHRAMAA works to provide the highest standards of reliability and credibility in its power grid in accordance with the highest international standards and in line with the stadium projects requirements in coordination with the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy.
KAHRAMAA has also completed five substations for Qatar Rail to supply the Doha Metro with all its electricity needs, at a total cost of about 900 million Qatari riyals, and has also completed and inaugurated all the ten power stations for Qatar Economic Zones (Manateq), at a total cost of about one billion Qatari riyals. The Corporation succeeded as well in providing various vital projects, events, and activities in the country with their electricity needs.
Al Kharsaah Solar Power Plant
Within the framework of KAHRAMAA's plans to diversify the sources of electric energy production and increase the share of renewable energy, in compliance with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Amir of the State of Qatar, and in line with the remarkable developments in the manufacture of solar panels, their high efficiency and low prices, and after studying the quantities of natural gas that can be saved and the resultant reduction in emissions from solar electricity production, KAHRAMAA has coordinated with the concerned authorities to begin the implementation of a a major solar power plant to produce electricity with photovoltaic cells. The Corporation has announced a request for bid, attracting companies with experience in developing major solar energy projects, qualifying 16 global developers and evaluating technical and financial offers. Finally, it succeeded in obtaining a competitive price for the electricity produced from the project, which is the lowest in the world for such projects. In January 2020, KAHRAMAA signed the agreements for the Al Kharsaah Large Scale Solar PV Power Plant to purchase the electricity produced from the project, which will be built on a 10 km2 area of land owned by KAHRAMAA with a total capacity of about 800 MW, which equals about 10% of Qatar’s peak electricity demand. 350 MW will be connected to the grid by the first quarter of 2021, while the commercial commissioning of the total capacity will start in the first quarter of 2022.
Water Security
The water sector has witnessed exceptional achievements during the last period despite the unjust blockade on the State of Qatar. In December 2018, KAHRAMAA has launched the strategic Water Security Mega Reservoirs Project considered as the backbone of water security in the state. The project includes 15 reservoirs deemed to be the largest in the world with a capacity of about 100 million gallons per reservoir, distributed in five strategic locations in Umm Birka, Umm Salal, Rawdat Rashid, Abu Nakhlah and Al Thumama. The reservoirs will be linked with desalination plants in the north and south by large-diameter pipelines and will have great operational flexibility to counter any emergency. The total capacity of the reservoirs is about 1500 million gallons, which exceeds what was built in Qatar over the past years, covers the storage needs until 2026, enhances the water security of the country via a strategic reserve that guarantees the provision of water to all sectors, and meets the increasing needs in light of the population growth.
KAHRAMAA also rehabilitated five fresh underground fields to ensure water security in the country, especially during emergencies. Further, the Corporation is implementing a rainfall harvest project to collect rainwater in low areas and inject them in aquifers via gravity so as to make use of them instead of having them evaporated. The project aims to recharge underground reservoirs and improve groundwater condition for the purpose of achieving water, food and environmental security. It was implemented in two phases, and it includes about 380 wells nationwide. About 60 wells were completed during the first stage, and the second phase is expected to be completed within a year.
Work is underway to adopt a water strategy in Qatar. The strategy has been prepared with the concerted efforts of all concerned authorities in the state. It includes several initiatives, values, performance indicators and several strategic elements, the most important of which are governance, water demand management and optimal exploitation to conserve water resources. The strategy is in line with QNV 2030, and it is being examined for approval and ratification by the highest authorities.
With regard to the water network, Kahramaa continued commissioning new water networks and installing water distribution lines to supply water to all sectors and to connect customers to the network, as well as supplying water to the “ezab” through the network to support livestock in the country.
Kahramaa also worked on maintaining water quality, such that the drinking water quality has exceeded the index of International Standards for Drinking-Water of the WHO. Further, KAHRAMAA’s Water Quality Laboratory successfully renewed its ISO 17025: 2005 certification from the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation, which is renewed periodically every two years. KAHRAMAA’s Laboratory was among the first laboratories to obtain this accreditation in the region.
Customer Services and Smart Transformation
KAHRAMAA continued with its initiatives at various levels. Customer services, for instance, underwent a great transformation and development through the expansion of smart services and the provision of 100% e-services through the electronic portals, with the possibility of electronic follow-up without the need to visit any of the customer services centers. KAHRAMAA has witnessed a qualitative shift in the level of services it provides to its customers, by linking and integrating systems with the concerned authorities in the country so that the service can be provided automatically without the need to submit requests or documents in person.
The Corporation also contributed to the progress in the ranking of the State of Qatar in the Ease of Access to Electricity in the Doing Business 2020 report issued by the World Bank, which reflects KAHRAMAA’s efforts in this regard through its innovative initiatives and solutions that have contributed to improving the experience of investors and contractors and facilitating the completion of work and reducing the time to receive the service.
As part of its endeavor towards ensuring excellence in customer service, KAHRAMAA has signed an agreement with Oracle to implement a Customer Relationship and Billing Management System, to provide a unified and comprehensive business system using the best customer service systems worldwide. The Corporation is also implementing the smart meter infrastructure development project in cooperation with the German company Siemens to provide advanced software for the deployment of a smart metering system in the State of Qatar.
Electric Vehicle Charging Stations
KAHRAMAA carried on with its pursuit of sustainability in accordance with the objectives of its National Program for Conservation and Energy Efficiency "Tarsheed" through several initiatives and agreements with program partners from various sectors. KAHRAMAA has succeeded in launching the first Photovoltaic Station for Energy Storage and Charging Electric Vehicles in the State of Qatar, bringing the number of charging stations to 11 electric vehicle charging stations in the country in cooperation with the private sector, including the first two stations for charging electric buses in the State of Qatar in cooperation with the Ministry of Transport and Communications and Mowasalat.
Financial Sustainability:
During the blockade and despite the great challenges, KAHRAMAA’s financial performance registered a noticeable improvement, as its strategic plans became based on financial sustainability, and the Corportation was assigned for the first time an A1 long term issuer with a stable outlook from Moody’s credit rating agency. This high and first-time rating issued by Moody’s for KAHRAMAA reflects the Corporations’ strong financial performance, along with its transformation into a financially sustainable enterprise.
KAHRAMAA’s excellence was not affected by the blockade and it continued playing a leading and innovative role all the while winning many local and international awards, confirming its distinction and innovative mechanisms and strategies that ensure continuous achievement and turn challenges into opportunities and initiatives.
KAHRAMAA renews its commitment to continue with its accomplishments, to exert utmost efforts to achieve its mission despite challenges, and to implement the directives of His Highness the Amir of the State of Qatar and the wise government.
