The Gulf region is witnessing ambitious power projects aimed at fulfilling demand mainly from the industrial and commercial sectors.

In a significant development, Qatar Petroleum (QP), Marubeni Corporation, and Qatar Electricity and Water Company (QEWC) signed a joint venture agreement establishing the Mesaieed Power Company to develop the Mesaieed A Power Project in Mesaieed Industrial City (MIC).
The project’s total capacity is 2,000 MW with the first phase slated for completion during summer 2008 with an initial capacity of 1,000 MW.
The plant will be fully completed by 2010 and will meet the growing power demand over the coming years.
Under the agreement, QP will hold a 20 per cent share in Mesaieed Power Company with QEWC and Marubeni Corporation each having 40 per cent.
In Oman, French utility group Suez Tractebel said an Oman power plant and water desalination contract clinched as part of a consortium was worth more than $3 billion in revenue over a period of 15 years.
Chief executive Gerard Mestrallet announced the value of the contract to the consortium, in which it has a 47.5 per cent stake.
Investments would amount to $800 million, he said.
As well as building and running the new 678 MW power plant and desalination plant with 120,000 cu m daily capacity, the consortium will also buy a 665 MW power plant from state-owned Electricity Holding Company.
The Al Rusail Power Company plant is the first to be privatised by the sultanate.
Suez Tractebel named its consortium partners as Mubadala Development and National Trading Company.
The new plant will use natural gas as feedstock and start operations by the second quarter of 2009.
Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) plans to install a coal-fired power generation plant in Raysut, which observers say is the first in the region to be coal fired. The plant capacity has not been fixed. PDO will appoint a consultant to carry out the feasibility study.
Saudi Electricity said it had awarded General Electric contracts worth SR3.65 billion  ($973 million) to help expand three power plants in key regions of Saudi Arabia.
The project will increase capacity of the three plants in the Eastern and Central provinces by 2,860 MW, the company said in a statement.
Completion is expected within 20 months. The firm was forced to ration power for two weeks in August in the two provinces — the kingdom’s main industrial hubs — due to technical failures.
Chief executive Ali bin Saleh Al Barrak has said at least SR150 billion in investment would be needed over the next 10 years to cope with rising demand for electricity in the country.