Mekorot seeks int’l engineering companies to develop infrastructure

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Mekorot seeks int’l engineering companies to develop infrastructure

March 12th, 2021

Awake Goy

Israel’s national water company, Mekorot, announced that it will launch an international tender, in the second quarter of 2021, to add engineering companies to the pool of planners, who will work with the company at developing new infrastructure in the water sector.

The tender will include contracts with engineering design companies from Israel and around the world for general planning, statutory planning and detailed planning of systems and facilities for the production, treatment, transmission and distribution of water throughout Israel. This will be the first time that Mekorot will enable the integration of engineering companies from around the world in the core areas of its activities in the water sector. To date, the National Water Company has operated a pool of planners, based solely on Israeli engineering companies. “The entry of new players in the field of water engineering, new methods and new technologies, will lead to more efficiency in the development of the water economy in the face of the challenges facing us in the coming years,” the company explained.

These challenges stem from the prolonged drought that has befallen Israel for five consecutive years, between the years 2013-2018. Following the effects of the drought, the government decided in February 2019 on a comprehensive plan for the development of the water economy. According to the goals of the plan, Mekorot is required to increase the scope of development of new water infrastructure throughout the country to an average of 2 billion NIS per year, compared with less than 1 billion NIS in previous years. At the same time, the subsidiary Shaham Mekorot Execution, which carried out most of the engineering work for Mekorot before the government decision, as well as construction and other works, received approval to compete in the free market in the field of infrastructure.

Mekorot CEO Eli Cohen: “Mekorot’s competitive process in the field of water engineering, including the possibility of integrating international factors, supports the challenging development goals of the water sector in the coming years. The current procedure is part of a complete set of innovative technological and engineering concepts, which Mekorot has been leading in recent years in order to ensure an advanced, stable and efficient water economy, for the well-being of Israeli citizens.”

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