In water-scarce Egypt, major industrial players have been looking for ways to reduce their water consumption. Ezz Steel, one of the leading steel producers in the Middle East and Africa, entrusted Veolia Water Technologies Egypt with supplying mobile water solutions that allowed cooling water supply to switch from the Nile River to desalinated seawater. This change is saving precious freshwater resources while helping Ezz Steel maintain business continuity.

Ezz Steel rolling mills and Ezz flat steel plants are located in Al-Sokhna, an industrial area near the city of Suez in Egypt. The plants used to be supplied with freshwater from the Nile river before recently making the change to desalinated seawater — a source water with a relatively high level of chloride which could affect the whole cooling process. Veolia deployed seven brackish water reverse osmosis mobile water treatment units to further treat the desalinated water, doing so in two phases to ensure a quick response: within only two months, Veolia provided an initial 8,000 m3/d capacity which was doubled during the second phase in April 2023 to reach 16,000 m3/d.

Thanks to Veolia's mobile water treatment units, Ezz Steel were able to secure 100% of their water production with lower chloride and total dissolved solids rates, allowing them to keep the water flowing into their cooling system. In doing so, Ezz Steel have reduced their water and chemical consumption by approximately 75%.

Mohamed Bakry, Utilities Senior Manager at Ezz Steel, commented: “Cooling is the primary water-consuming process in steel manufacturing plants. Veolia was able to provide an emergency response with the first phase being up and running in two months. It allowed us to reduce the use of freshwater while maintaining the steel production of our plants and reaching the required water quality.”

“In parts of the world affected by water scarcity, reducing their water footprint by optimizing cooling operations and maximizing water reuse is a game changer for industries. Veolia Water Technologies is pleased to collaborate with EZZ Steel and accompany them in their ecological transformation. Our team was able to rapidly offer an alternative to the environmental challenge they were facing by providing a reliable and secure source of water to answer their urgent needs” stated Laurent Hanique,  Middle East Techno Products & Services Director for Veolia Water Technologies.

With a worldwide fleet, Veolia’s mobile water services allow companies to benefit from a reliable and secure source of treated water 24/7, 365 days per year, to supply their core operations.

About Ezz Steel

Ezz Steel is one of the world's fastest growing and most technically advanced steel producers. Their purpose-built steelmaking plants across Egypt have the capacity to produce 7 million tons of long and flat products per year. Their rebar, wire rod, flat steel and welded steel fabric are delivered to customers worldwide to support a multitude of applications in the construction, manufacturing, engineering and transport sectors. Their dedication to investing in the latest technology and in the skills of their people, coupled with a commitment to ongoing improvement and unparalleled customer service, have established Ezz Steel as a name synonymous with quality, reliability and service excellence.

About Veolia Group

Veolia Group aims to become the benchmark company for ecological transformation. Present on five continents with nearly 220,000 employees, the Group designs and deploys useful, practical solutions for the management of water, waste and energy that are contributing to a radical turnaround of the current situation. Through its three complementary activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, to preserve available resources and to renew them. In 2022, the Veolia group provided 111 million inhabitants with drinking water and 97 million with sanitation, produced 44 terawatt hours and recovered 61 million tonnes of waste. Veolia Environnement (Paris Euronext: VIE) achieved consolidated revenue of 42.885 billion euros in 2022. www.veolia.com

Contacts
Veolia Water Technologies Middle East
Mélodie Plaschy
Communications Manager
melodie.plaschy@veolia.com
www.middle-east.veoliawatertechnologies.com
Veolia Water Technologies Media Relations
Manon Painchaud
manon.painchaud@veolia.com
www.veoliawatertechnologies.com