Fehily Timoney & Company has signed a multi-million euro deal in Kuwait which will see key staff at the 50-strong, Cork and Dublin-based firm, design and prepare tender documents for a major water distribution system for the Middle Eastern capital city, in collaboration with its partners. The significant deal with the Ministry of Electricity and Water, Kuwait, is Fehily Timoney’s first project win in Kuwait and sees it partnering with Arab Engineering Consultants and Dublin firm, Nicholas O’Dwyer, to deliver the 17-month-long phase of the project. The new pumping station will handle twice the annual water supply requirements of Dublin. At least half of the total project revenue will return directly back to Ireland and as many as 16 Irish jobs will be generated over the lifetime of the contract, according to Fehily Timoney managing director, Eamon Timoney. Work has already begun on the design and contract documentation of the main potable water pumping station, trunk distribution mains and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems for the water distribution system for the Doha area of Kuwait City. “This is our first project win in Kuwait. We have tendered previously in the waste management arena and finished second on a number of occasions. This is stage two of a 12-stage project. We’re not eligible to tender for phase three but will definitely be tendering for the remainder of the project," said Timoney. “There’s a significant construction supervision element to our part of the project and if the client is happy with the service we provide, then our contract could be extended to cover the construction supervision stage. This could help us generate even further employment on the ground in Kuwait and back at the team’s offices in Cork and Dublin, where our engineers, scientists, town planers and support staff are based,” he said. Kuwait City's present water complex  produces 670,000 m³ per day, significantly more that Dublin, which currently produces 540,000 m³ daily. Kuwait also has to rely entirely on saline groundwater and seawater to meet its water supply requirements as it does not have any natural freshwater resource available. Meeting growing needs is critical as the average water consumption levels in Kuwait are very high, averaging at about 470 litres per day. “In order to satisfy the high demand for water, significant investment in water supply infrastructure is required on an ongoing basis in Kuwait.  Distilled (fresh) water is produced by desalination of seawater and this water is primarily used for human consumption. Groundwater (brackish water) is sourced from groundwater wells. This groundwater is blended with distilled (fresh) water for use in agriculture, landscaping, public parks and household purposes,” Timoney explained.