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Houston Companies Win Contract To Build $250 Million Power Plant in
Kuwait
HPI and S&W
Energy Solutions developing turnkey project on accelerated timeline
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Houston’s HPI LLC and S&W Energy Solutions
recently edged out much larger engineering and construction
companies in a competition for the right to build the 200-megawatt
Shuwaikh Power Plant in Kuwait. The low emissions, gas-fired power
plant is scheduled for completion by May 31 and is expected to be
operational in six months – much faster than average construction
times for similar power plants of its kind – and is designed to
ensure a dependable power supply to Kuwait during peak summer
months.
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Many Persian Gulf countries, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and
Saudi Arabia, are experiencing significant growth and development –
more than their existing power network can handle. With a rise in
electricity brownouts and blackouts, the Middle East has an
immediate need for additional power generation and is planning a
regional electricity grid. In bidding for major overseas energy
projects, Houston companies, such as HPI and S&W, benefit from
having direct access to local industry resources and equipment, and
the city’s major international port operations.
“The Texas Gulf Coast, Houston in particular, is increasingly
playing a major role in the emergence of new energy projects in the
Middle East and the Shuwaikh Power Plant project is one example of
that,” said Hal Pontez, president of HPI, LLC, an international
power developer. “Our immediate access to energy industry talent and
raw materials, as well as flexible transportation options, gives us
a definite strategic advantage over some of the larger, more
entrenched engineering and construction firms.”
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Pontez’s past work on behalf of
the U.S. Department of State provided the team with a network of
important contacts in the region. That, coupled with the S&W
president’s former ties to General Electric, allowed the partnership
to obtain the six gas turbogenerators necessary for the project in a
much shorter timeframe than is standard in the industry.
Other companies competing for the contract included Pratt & Whitney,
a Hartford, Connecticut manufacturer of aircraft engines and gas
turbines, and Foster Wheeler, Ltd., a Clinton, New Jersey
engineering and construction company.
The contract, awarded by the Kuwaiti Ministry of Electricity and
Water, includes a five-year operations and maintenance component.
HPI and S&W are partnering with Alghanim International, a leading
Kuwaiti civil and electromechanical engineering and contracting
company, which is responsible for handling all of the civil works
and site construction efforts associated with the project.
ABOUT HPI LLC
HPI is a Houston-based company specializing in the design and
development, engineering, manufacturing, testing, installation, and
commissioning of control and monitoring systems for industrial
turbo-machinery applications. HPI also provides several mobile power
generation solutions, including for backup power, cogeneration
applications, distributed generation, and emergency energy.
Contacts:
Judy Nichols & Associates, Houston
Judy Nichols, 713-781-0053
Judy.Nichols@ev1.net
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