Iraq’s State Company for Oil Projects (Scop) and its contractor have selected France’s Veolia Water Technologies to engineer, procure and deliver a water recovery unit for the $6.04bn Karbala New Refinery project in the Karbala province.

The main engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor on the project is HDGSK, a joint venture comprising Korea’s Hyundai Engineering & Construction (E&C), Hyundai Engineering Company, GS E&C, and SK E&C.

The EPC contract for the Karbala New Refinery was awarded on 7 January 2014.

The 140,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) facility is one of four refineries planned by the Oil Ministry in order to boost the country’s refining capacity by 750,000 b/d.

“The Karbala refinery is due to become the most technically advanced refinery in Iraq,” says Ignacio Martinez, vice-president of Veolia. “Veolia is proud to contribute its strong expertise in zero liquid discharge and waste reduction processes, helping Scop and the HDGSK joint venture meet their economic and environmental goals.” 

Veolia’s Zero Liquid Discharge Evaporator and Crystalliser plant will have a capacity of 55 cubic metres an hour, and is scheduled for delivery in August 2016.

Hyundai E&C and its affiliate Hyundai Engineering have a combined 37.5 per cent stake in the project, worth about $2.3bn. GS E&C also has a 37.5 per cent stake, while SK E&C has a 25 per cent stake worth $1.5bn. 

SK E&C is responsible for the water utilities at the refinery, and chose Veolia´s Zero Liquid Discharge technology for the project.  

Veolia´s contract was announced in a statement released by the company on 15 October. The firm did not reveal the value of the deal.