The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (Miga), the political risk insurance arm of the Washington-based World Bank Group, has signed an agreement to insure the existing As-Samra wastewater plant and its expansion, located northeast of Amman in Jordan.

The As-Samra facility is the biggest wastewater treatment plant in Jordan, and is the first build-operate-transfer (BOT) project in the country.  The $184.3m planned expansion will increase the existing 840,000-cubic-metres capacity of the plant by 37 per cent. The sludge treatment capacity of the plant will increase by 80 per cent.

The expansion scheme is scheduled for completion by December 2016, and will service more than three million residents in the governorates of Amman and Zarqa.

Miga’s guarantees of $13.1m cover equity investments by Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant Company, which consists of France’s Suez Environment and Infilco Degremont, and the US’ Morganti Group.