AlBihouth Waste-to-Energy Facility Reaches Critical Construction Milestone
Tadweer Group's transformative infrastructure project has achieved 90 per cent completion, marked by successful boiler pressure tests and an exemplary safety record of six million working hours without incident.
Construction of Abu Dhabi’s AlBihouth Waste-to-Energy Facility has progressed to 90 per cent completion, signalling the approach of a transformative moment for the emirate’s waste management infrastructure. The milestone comes alongside the successful completion of pressure tests on the facility’s two boilers and the achievement of six million working hours without a lost time injury, reflecting both engineering rigour and an uncompromising commitment to workforce safety.
Once operational, the facility will process approximately 900,000 tonnes of waste annually, generating sufficient electricity to power around 52,000 homes. The plant will treat approximately half of Abu Dhabi’s municipal household waste, meaningfully advancing the emirate’s ambition to divert 80 per cent of waste away from landfill by 2031. This represents a fundamental shift in how the emirate manages its waste, transforming what would otherwise be discarded material into productive energy.
The project brings together international expertise through a consortium of shareholders including Tadweer Group, Japan’s Marubeni Corporation, Switzerland-based Kanadevia Inova, and the Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation for Transport and Urban Development. This collaboration merges world-leading waste-to-energy technologies with infrastructure development knowledge to support Abu Dhabi’s circular economy ambitions.
The construction milestones were celebrated at a ceremony attended by Arthur Mattli, Ambassador of Switzerland to the UAE, and Ken Okaniwa, Ambassador of Japan to the UAE, alongside project stakeholders and shareholders who viewed the construction progress firsthand. Etienne Petit, Chief Executive Officer of Tadweer Group, reflected on the project’s deeper significance: “Our responsibility extends beyond completing construction. It is to deliver infrastructure that Abu Dhabi can depend on for the long term, while protecting the people who are building it.”
Stefan Kipp, Chief Executive Officer of AlBihouth Waste-to-Energy Facility, emphasized the safety culture established across the project. “Achieving six million working hours without a lost time injury reflects the strong safety culture we have established across the project,” he noted, adding that as construction progresses, maintaining effective coordination among all partners and preparing the facility for safe, efficient and reliable operations remains paramount.
What it means for Abu Dhabi
The AlBihouth facility represents a cornerstone infrastructure investment for Abu Dhabi’s long-term sustainability goals. By processing half of the emirate’s municipal household waste and generating substantial electricity, it addresses both waste management and energy production simultaneously, creating tangible environmental and economic benefits. As we reported in our coverage of Emirates Biotech and UAEU’s integrated organic waste valorisation plant, the emirate is advancing multiple pathways to transform waste into valuable resources.
The facility’s imminent commissioning will materially strengthen Abu Dhabi’s infrastructure resilience whilst supporting the 2031 waste diversion target. The six million working hours without lost time injury signals the high operational standards that will characterise the facility’s running, ensuring both community benefit and workforce protection as the plant enters service.
Source: WAM