No reason was given for the extension by the client, the Ministry of Finance.

Six consortiums have formed in preparation for the submission of proposals.

The successful bidder will design, finance, construct and commission the plant on a build-own-operate basis.

The plant will have capacity of 1,100-1,250MW of power and 48 million gallons a day of desalinated water. It will use natural gas as the primary feedstock with fuel oil as a back-up option. The start of commercial operation is expected in 2011.

BNP Paribas is the financial adviser on the project, while Mott MacDonald and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer are the technical and legal advisers respectively (MEED 14:3:08).