SNC-Lavalin, Sinopec Engineering to build Saudi sulfuric acid facility

SNC-Lavalin, in consortium with Sinopec Engineering Group, has signed a contract with Ma'aden in Saudi Arabia to provide engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning and start-up services for a three-line,15,150 tpd sulfuric acid plant. 

Also included in the agreement are two 75-MW power plants that will recover heat generated by the acid plant operations. The total value of the contract is approximately $764 million, with SNC-Lavalin's portion estimated at $500 million .

The project was awarded as part of Ma'aden's Waad Al Shamal phosphate project, which involves the conversion of phosphate ore from the Al Khabra mine into various end products, primarily for the agricultural sector. 

The contract signing was formalized at a ceremony held in Turaif, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday with the participation of the Saudi Royal Family, government ministers and various dignitaries.

The sulfuric acid plant will use industry leading technology from MECS (a wholly-owned subsidiary of DuPont) to produce acid and generate power through the efficient recovery of process waste heat. 

The project, scheduled to be operational in the fourth quarter of 2016, will be one of the largest complexes of its kind.

"We are honored to be part of a project that will support Ma'aden in its mandate to develop its mineral resources and increase industrial development in the Northern Province and Al-Jouf areas of Saudi Arabia ," said Dale Clarke, executive vice president for SNC-Lavalin.