Wet processing experts CDE, in partnership with Gulf Center United Industrial Equipment Co. and KAK-LAMOR JV/C announced plans to supply two contaminated soils wash plants to support the clean-up effort of an estimated 114km2 of polluted land in Kuwait as part of one of the largest environmental projects of its kind.
The plans were announced to coincide with World Soils Day (December 5), an international day to focus attention on the importance of healthy soil and to advocate for the sustainable management of soil resources.
Following the destruction of some 700 oil wells in the early 1990s, approximately 26,000,000m3 of soil was contaminated with crude oil, signalling the launch of one of the most extensive remediation programmes involving the cooperation and expertise of a consortium of international partners.
Working alongside industrial and engineering services firm Gulf Center United Industrial Equipment Co., CDE’s longstanding partner in Kuwait, and KAK-LAMOR JV/C, a joint venture between Kuwaiti EPC contractors Khaled Ali Al-Kharafi & Brothers Co. and Finnish remediation specialists Lamor, CDE wet processing technology will be utilised for the treatment of up to 800,000 tons of contaminated soil per year.
KAK-LAMOR JV/C have appointed CDE to design and engineer a turnkey wash plant for each of the North Kuwait Excavation, Transportation and Remediation (NKETR Zone 1) and South Kuwait Excavation, Transportation and Remediation (SKETR Zone 1) projects.
The two 100t/h and 140t/h solutions will process and remediate the coarse soil fraction to eliminate contaminants and recover high-quality washed construction sand and aggregates suitable for reuse. Further still, CDE’s expertise in the development of sustainable washing solutions will help to reduce the carbon footprint associated with the overall operation through significant efficiency gains.
“The scale and ambition of this remediation programme cannot be understated,” said Ruchin Garg, CDE’s Regional Manager for the Middle East and Africa. “It is a true test of our engineering excellence and a demonstration of how robust and effective CDE technology is at processing contaminated soils.”
It is anticipated the two plants will be commissioned in early 2023.