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Marafiq to Build $500m Industrial Wastewater Plant in Jubail for SATORP Reuse (2025)

BUSINESSNATIONAL

Tech Bit

10/9/20255 min read

Marafiq to Build $500m Industrial Wastewater Treatment in Jubail

Saudi Arabia is proving that heavy industry and smart water use can work together in a dry region. The country is pushing hard to cut freshwater demand, support reuse, and build cleaner plants that can grow the economy without wasting resources.

Marafiq has announced a $500 million industrial wastewater treatment in Jubail that will recycle water for SATORP’s Amiral complex. This project tackles complex streams, including spent caustic, and sends treated water back into process use. Less freshwater in, less pollution out, stronger reliability for a giant chemicals hub.

Built by Marafiq with Veolia and Lamar Arabia, the plant will be operated and maintained for 30 years under a long-term deal with SATORP. It is designed to process about 8.8 million cubic meters each year, which places it among the largest reuse facilities in the Middle East. The aim is simple, turn waste into a steady, usable resource.

For industry leaders, the payoff is clear. This boosts uptime, trims operating risk, and fits squarely with Vision 2030’s Saudi sustainable projects. For citizens, it means smarter use of scarce water and cleaner operations near one of the country’s key industrial cities.

If you follow energy, water, or chemicals, this is one to watch. We will break down how the plant’s closed-loop approach works, what it means for Amiral, and why it sets a new bar for industrial wastewater treatment in Jubail.

Video resource for context on wastewater treatment in Jubail:

Who is Behind This Major Project in Jubail?

A dedicated consortium is building, financing, and running the plant through a special purpose vehicle (SPV). The structure is simple and built for long-term reliability. Clear ownership, clear roles, and a 30-year path to stable operations.

Key Players and Their Expertise

  • Marafiq (40% lead): Marafiq runs power and water for Jubail and Yanbu, so it knows the terrain, the clients, and the standards. That local utility experience trims ramp-up risk and keeps uptime high when industrial flows swing. Marafiq anchors the SPV and sets the compliance and service model that heavy industry trusts.

  • Veolia Middle East (35%): Veolia brings advanced treatment trains for spent caustic, high-COD streams, and mixed petrochemical wastewater. Think high-performance pre-treatment, oxidation, biological polishing, and reuse-focused polishing. The company’s release on the project outlines its role in supplying best-in-class technologies for complex industrial water in the region. See the details in Veolia’s announcement: Industrial water project in the Middle East for SATORP - Veolia.

  • Lamar Arabia (25%): Lamar focuses on energy and infrastructure delivery. It helps integrate power, utilities, and plant systems so the treatment line runs tight and efficient. That matters for energy-intensive oxidation steps and 24/7 process stability.

Together, they formed an SPV to design, build, finance, operate, and maintain the plant for 30 years. The concession was signed in September 2025, confirming long-term alignment between owner, operator, and offtaker. For a quick project snapshot, see this industry brief: Marafiq, Veolia and Lamar Arabia sign $500 million IWWTP project.

Connection to SATORP's Amiral Complex

The plant serves SATORP’s $11 billion Amiral chemical complex in Jubail II Industrial City. It treats tough streams from refining and petrochemicals, with a focus on spent caustic and other high-load effluents. The process pushes treated water back into production, which cuts freshwater draw and supports steady utilities for Saudi Aramco-linked operations.

This setup supports start-up, peak loads, and normal cycles without breaking stride. The result is reliable treatment, high reuse, and fewer production risks. In short, the SPV model, proven tech, and utility discipline give Amiral a stable water backbone for decades.

How the Plant Will Treat and Reuse Wastewater

Marafiq’s new unit in Jubail turns tough industrial wastewater into a steady, reusable stream for the Amiral complex. The treatment train blends smart biology, tight filtration, and fast polishing. The result is clear water that can go back into process use, not out to waste.

Advanced Technologies at Work

Here is how the main steps line up, in plain terms:

  • AnoxKaldnes MBBR: Think of it as a hotel for helpful bacteria. Plastic carriers give bacteria a home so they can eat pollutants fast, even when loads swing. This stabilizes treatment for petrochemical streams with high COD and variable flow.

  • ZeeWeed membranes: These ultrafine filters act like a sieve at the end of the biological step. They hold solids and microbes back, and let clean water pass. That means clear, low-turbidity water with a small footprint and high uptime.

  • Actiflo Carb: This is the polishing move. Micro-sand and powdered activated carbon snap out the last, stubborn bits like trace organics and color. It is fast, compact, and ideal for final cleanup before reuse.

These named technologies are confirmed for the project, as detailed in Veolia’s update on SATORP’s facility in Jubail. See the tech lineup here: Industrial water project in the Middle East for SATORP - Veolia. A second industry brief echoes the same stack: Saudi Arabia: Veolia to deliver major industrial ....

Capacity and Closed-Loop Benefits

The plant is built for about 8.8 million cubic meters per year, making it the largest industrial reuse facility in the Middle East. Closing the loop at this scale cuts freshwater intake and lowers discharge.

Key gains you can bank on:

  • Less waste: More water stays in the system, not in disposal.

  • Energy savings: Shorter intake and discharge cycles, plus compact processes, trim power per cubic meter.

  • Operational stability: Reuse buffers supply risk and supports continuous production at Amiral.

Visual suggestion: add a simple process flow diagram, from equalization to MBBR, membranes, Actiflo Carb, then reuse, to help readers grasp the sequence at a glance.

Why This Project Boosts Sustainability in Saudi Arabia

Marafiq’s new industrial wastewater plant in Jubail turns waste into a reliable resource, which is exactly what Saudi Arabia needs in a dry climate. By closing the loop for SATORP’s Amiral complex, the project cuts fresh water intake, lowers pollution, and adds resilience to a core industrial hub. The scale is significant, with confirmed technologies built for complex petrochemical streams, as outlined in Veolia’s project release on the region’s largest industrial reuse facility: Saudi Arabia: Veolia to supply best-in-class innovative technologies. This is where wastewater reuse benefits Saudi industry and communities at the same time.

Environmental Wins for Jubail's Industries

Treating spent caustic and high-COD streams stops contaminants at the source. That means cleaner outfalls, lower odors, and safer handling of tricky effluents. It also shrinks the city’s overall eco-footprint, since more treated water flows back into production instead of into disposal.

Here is what changes on the ground:

  • Lower pollution loads: Advanced oxidation, MBBR biology, and membrane barriers strip out organics and solids before discharge.

  • Less freshwater demand: Reuse trims intake from desal and groundwater, easing pressure on scarce resources in the Eastern Province.

  • Energy-aware operations: Compact process steps and stable loads reduce power per cubic meter over time.

  • Cost control for plants: Stable recycled supply reduces water bills, trucking, and risk premiums for peak events.

For context on the partnership and recycling aims, see this summary of the initiative focused on cutting industrial impacts in Jubail: SATORP partners with Marafiq, Veolia, and Lamar.

Timeline and Long-Term Outlook

Construction kicks off soon, backed by a 30-year operations plan. The schedule targets start of operations by 2028, which syncs with Amiral’s broader utilities timeline. A long run matters, since it locks in reuse capacity, skills, and spare parts pipelines for decades.

Expect ripple effects:

  • Future expansions: Modular polishing and membrane trains can scale as flows grow.

  • Regional influence: Success in Jubail sets a benchmark other Gulf projects can follow, especially those handling petrochemical wastewater.

  • Local economic lift: Jobs open during construction, commissioning, and ongoing O&M, with steady demand for technicians, lab staff, and field crews.

All told, the project supports national goals for cleaner growth, stronger industry, and smarter water use. It proves that wastewater reuse benefits Saudi cities and industries in practical, measurable ways.