French consortium given Abu Dhabi road lighting LED project

DMT

• Emirate maturing as hub for public private partnerships
• Energy efficient infrastructure will make big electricity savings

A French consortium has been selected to deliver a public private partnership project in Abu Dhabi as the region continues to mature as a hub for PPPs.

The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (Adio), in collaboration with the Department of Municipalities and Transport, has selected EDF (Eléctricité de France) and Engie to deliver phase 2 of its road lighting LED project. 

The French majors have formed a 50-50 joint venture called Nojoom to deliver the project in the UAE capital.

The project includes the finance, supply, installation, operation and maintenance of 133,473 LED energy-efficient lights which will result in significant electricity savings of almost 2,400 million kWh, equivalent to a reduction of about 74 percent in power consumption over the 12-year concession period.

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The award comes as experts expect governments in the GCC to turn increasingly to PPP to deliver key social infrastructure projects.

This is encouraging firms such as Australian PPP giant Plenary Group to expand in the region as it actively bids on projects in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Northern Emirates and Bahrain. 

Abdulla Abdul Aziz AlShamsi, acting director general of Adio, said: “The completion of the second phase of the LED road lighting tender demonstrates the strength of Abu Dhabi’s PPP framework and our commitment to support partnerships between the public and private sectors to deliver strategic infrastructure projects.”

Ian Harfield, managing director of Engie Energy Solutions, added: “The Abu Dhabi lighting project is a template for future delivery of regional infrastructure projects.

“The model delivers true value to municipalities by eliminating the need for capital expenditure which can be invested in other community improvement projects. We look forward to similar projects in the region and beyond.” 

This is echoed by Plenary Group chairman John O’Rourke who described the region as “maturing as a hub for PPPs”.

Chief investment officer Paul Crowe added: “We are encouraged by the pipeline of likely infrastructure projects across the Middle East.

“We are investing and building a team locally in the UAE and the next 12 months will see us focus on social infrastructure including education and health, and transport infrastructure including rail and road.” 

Adio is the central Abu Dhabi government hub managing the facilitation, development and procurement of all infrastructure projects delivered through a PPP framework in the emirate.