National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri) expects the initial and commercial operations of the first barges under its 760 million Saudi riyal ($203 million) deal with Saline Water Conversion Corporation () to start in the second half of 2024.

The floating barges, located near the port of Al Shuqaiq on Saudi Arabia’s Western coast, are currently undergoing testing and commissioning, Bahri said in a statement to the Saudi stock exchange.

The project was postponed due to the environmental clearances for new infrastructure construction in Yanbu taking longer than expected amid changes in regulatory agencies, the statement added.

Bahri started trial commissioning of the first barge in January 2022 and expected commissioning by the fourth quarter of 2022. However, the company pushed the deadline to H2 2023 in March 2023.

The shipping major signed a contract in 2019 for three floating stations to supply and transfer desalinated water from the stations to desalination tanks. Each station will have a capacity of 50,000 cubic meters per day with a total capacity of 150,000 cubic meters a day.

(Writing by D Madhura; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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