Chadbourne & Parke represented the Sponsors, Suez Environnement S.A.S., Infilco Degremont, Inc and The Morganti Group, Inc, on all aspects of the US$225 million expansion of As-Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant in Jordan.
The Expansion of As-Samra Plant, which will be funded by a Millennium Challenge Corporation grant, a commercial bank facility provided by a syndicate of Jordanian banks led by Arab Bank, progress payments by the Government of Jordan following completion of certain milestones and from equity to be contributed by the Sponsors, reached financial close on July 18, 2012.
This is the only project financing to take place in Jordan this year and the first project financing that the Millennium Challenge Corporation has ever taken part in anywhere in the world.
The Expansion of the As-Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant is a public private partnership (PPP) involving the construction, operation and financing of a wastewater treatment plant in accordance with a build, operate and transfer (BOT) concession with a term of 25 years.
The existing plant which was completed in 2008 has almost reached its maximum hydraulic capacity and will soon be unable to handle the demands on it. The expanded plant will improve the environmental and health conditions of more than 3 million people in Amman and Zarqa.
The plant’s expansion will start in August and is expected to take 36 months until completion.
The Chadbourne team was led by project finance partner Richard Keenan in Dubai, assisted by associates Yasser Yaqub and Marc Norman in Dubai and Monika Szymanski in New York.
“We were delighted to have advised our clients, Suez, Degremont and Morganti on this project,” said Mr. Keenan. “This latest deal helps to reinforce Chadbourne’s strong track record of successfully closing power and water deals in Jordan and the Middle East. The plant’s expansion should also improve the health and quality of life of millions of people in Jordan.”
The As-Samra Wastewater Treatment plant is not only very important to the people of Amman but is also a valuable source of water used for agricultural purposes in the Jordan River Valley. Wastewater treated by the plant in accordance with international and Jordanian environmental standards and regulations is released from the plant and channeled into a dam. Water from this dam is used to irrigate crops and pasture in an area which is vital to Jordan’s agricultural production.
As urban populations expand in the drier parts of the World, the demand for wastewater treatment technology developed by the Sponsors and used in connection with the As-Samra Plant will only increase.
Chadbourne lawyers have advised on some of the most significant power and water projects in the Middle East, including the Qurayyah IPP in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Shuweihat 2 IWPP in Abu Dhabi and the Barka 3/Sohar 2 IPPs in Oman.
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