Ain Ghazal Wastewater Project

Project Implementation Status

The project agreements (Loan and Grant) between EBRD, FCDO and Ministry of Water and Irrigation (MWI) were signed in
December 2016.

• The EBRD-mobilised consultants to carry out the Feasibility Study completed their work in April 2017 following an extension
  to their contract to allow for the updated census figures.
• EBRD secured funding from its donor programme (SEMED Multi-Donor Account and the internal Shareholder Special Fund
  Community Resilience Window) to finance the Design, Implementation and Supervision consultant for the project. However,
  the selection of the Design, Implementation and Supervision consultant was terminated due to a procurement issue. It was
  initially understood that WAJ had requested USAID to step in and carry out the Design tasks, however, in order to expedite the
  projects implementation, it was instead agreed that the project will be tendered as a Design-Build contract and therefore that
  there was no need for a Design consultancy to be launched.
• WAJ completed the procurement for the Tender and Implementation support consultants, utilizing the remaining funding from
  the EBRD’s SEMED Multi-Donor Account and the internal Shareholder Special Fund Community Resilience Window, on 27
  March 2019 (the final CP for effectiveness).
• The project was declared effective on 29 March 2019.
• The environmental permit required from the Ministry of Environment was obtained in April 2019.
• The consultants (Dar Al-Omran Infrastructure and Environment) supported WAJ throughout the tender process, which was
  launched on 8 August 2019.
• The contract with the winning bidder, Arab Towers Contracting Company, was signed in September 2020. The winning bidder’s
  contract price was lower than the original expected project amount by circa USD 9.1 million. These project savings would remain
  as committed funds to the benefit of the project, to cover future variations in the project design or price of material if justified.
• The contractor carried out the detailed design works and commencement works on site in February 2021. The contractor received
  an advance payment of 10% of the contract price (US$ 3.4 million) funded from the EBRD loan. The contractor also received
  afterwards a total disbursement amount of USD 13.2 million, between March and November 2022, from the different funding sources on a pro-rata basis between the EBRD’s loan, FCDO, GCFF and EBRD’s Shareholder Special Fund. The total funds disbursed to the contract to date amount to USD 19.04 million.
• Due to delays in agreeing on the technical specifications with the contractor, and due to the Covid pandemic, the initial completion target date of September 2022 had been first revised to November 2023, and later to November 2024 due to unforeseen delays from access by the contractor to specific excavation sites along the 31.5 km conveyor route. Therefore, the funds availability has been extended as a second time until 1st December 2024, which was approved in December 2023.
• In March 2021, the Ministry of Water and Irrigation suspended temporarily the project for 47 days and then requested again for
  the contractor to resume the works. Due to this action by the Ministry, the contractor submitted a EUR 11.2 million claim to the
  Ministry to compensate for the price increase of material that occurred during the suspension period. The Ministry determined
  that the contractor is not entitled to a financial claim, but only to a time extension to compensate for the time during which the
  Ministry temporarily suspended the project. The Ministry refrained from sending out their decision officially to the contractor
  for over a year, but they ultimately did in November 2022. Since then, the contractor refuted this rejection and has been
  extensively engaging with WAJ at technical level and ministerial level to explain the merits of this claim. EBRD has been closely
  following the development of the claim discussions and has encouraged the Ministry on numerous occasions to reach an amicable
  settlement, however these efforts did not come to fruition yet. An increased momentum in November and December 2023 was
  notable due to several meetings by WAJ and the Contractor aiming at reaching a mutual understanding.
• The Ministry of Water and Irrigation advised the EBRD that a design amendment of the inlet structure of the pipeline that
  connects it with the As Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant is needed; it was initially anticipated that this inlet structure would be constructed under a different project, but it is no longer the case. The Ministry officially engaged with the operator of As Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant in order to propose a design. Then the Ministry assessed the designed and is yet to issue a decision whether to include this inlet structure in the current project or not. The Ministry would share with the EBRD an official request to fund this additional structure, the cost of which is expected to be around EUR 800k, according to the initial estimations by the Ministry. Any additional funds needed to cover this amended scope would be covered from the existing funding sources on a pro-rata basis, after conducting any and all necessary due diligence by the EBRD. As of this report date, no additional funding is expected to be requested from the donors for this project.
• The distribution of disbursement from the funding sources is based on pro rata use of sources is achieved by the end of the
  project. So far, USD 1,083,819.17 have been disbursed from the GCFF.
• The overall project completion rate stood at c. 77.5% as of 31st December 2024 noting that the work planned for the end of 2024 was at 100% completion. The project has faced multiple issues, including farms and trees located on the original route of the
  project pipeline around the area were blocking implementation. WAJ issued letters and followed with the related authorities to
  solve the issue of encroachments. They advised that they wait until the olive harvest season is over and will resume the
  implementation work. WAJ have been dealing with the Ministry of Public Works and Housing (MoPWH) to obtain permissions
  to the implementation work that would affect the Bus Rapid Transit routes. The MoPWH appointed a third-party consultant to
  assess the work, which is a regular practice for the Jordanian government in similar cases. They are currently waiting for an
  update on this.
• The pipes installation works in open areas such as Surveying, Trail pits excavation, excavation, bedding and pipes surround
  materials, pipes laying and fittings installation, welding, NDT, pipes external PE wrapping and pipes internal protection for
  welded joints by cement lining and backfilling are still ongoing, with around c 77.5% of open areas works, Hydro testing for
  portion of work is ongoing. As of December 2024, around 24.5km of pipes out of the 31.5km have been installed. Subsequently,
  a progress of only 2km has been made in 2024 due to the challenges faced by the project.
• The pipes work inside existing tunnel area preparation such as guides and supports installation are completed in 2023, the pipe laying and preparation for welding is ongoing. The pipes work across roads preparations are ongoing, such as ground leveling to receive the pipes. For structural works in Ain Ghazal – Operation Tank, the concrete Casting of the Operation Tank Walls and
  backfilling around is ongoing, and concrete casting for precast slabs is ongoing.