Greater Beirut Water Supply
Conveyance + treatment, 250,000 m3/day in Lebanon.
Under construction
The record
- Country
- Lebanon
- Location
- Beirut
- Coordinates
- 33.890, 35.500
- Technology
- Conveyance + treatment
- Capacity
- 250,000 m3/day
- Capital cost
- US$561.7 m, the World Bank's project budget at the first project's closing on 30 April 2025 (ICR, December 2025), up from US$370 m at appraisal and including a financing gap of around US$219 m; the second phase (IBRD loan of US$257.8 m, P504170, approved 15 January 2025) finances the completion of these works, so it is not added, to avoid counting the unfinished first-phase works twice
- Stage
- Under construction
- Owner or client
- Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) and Beirut and Mount Lebanon Water Establishment (BMLWE), under the Ministry of Energy and Water
- Contractor
- —
- Operator
- —
- Finance
- World Bank IBRD loan US$200 million, BMLWE US$140 million, Government of Lebanon US$30 million; second phase: IBRD loan US$257.8 million (Second Greater Beirut Water Supply Project, approved 15 January 2025)
- Award or start year
- 2010
- Commissioned
- —
Record last checked 2026-10-16.
History
- 2010-12
World Bank approves US$200 million IBRD loan (16 December 2010)
- 2012-12
Loan becomes effective (4 December 2012)
- 2024-10
Wardanieh treatment plant 78% built at end-October
- 2025-01
World Bank approves the US$257.8 million Second Greater Beirut Water Supply Project on 15 January
- 2025-04
First project closes on 30 April with 24 km of conveyor tunnel excavated but unlined, 8.4 of 10 km of transmission pipelines built, the Wardanieh treatment plant 89% complete, 432 km of distribution pipelines and 11,600 household connections completed
Sources
11 references
Every field in the record above is taken from the references below. A field that none of them confirms prints as a dash.
- World Bank, Implementation Status and Results Report, Greater Beirut Water Supply Project P103063, archived 15 January 2025. documents1.worldbank.org.
- Bank Information Center, Greater Beirut Water Supply Project (project summary, approval 16 December 2010, total cost US$370 million). bankinformationcenter.org.
- World Bank, final Implementation Status and Results Report, Greater Beirut Water Supply Project P103063 (archived 22 May 2025). documents1.worldbank.org.
- The project closed on 30 April 2025 as scheduled.
- World Bank, Project Appraisal Document, Second Greater Beirut Water Supply Project P504170 (12 Dec 2024). documents.worldbank.org.
- The Wardanieh treatment plant was 78 percent built by end-October 2024 but not completed by the first project's closure; IBRD loan of US$257.8 million; the PAD's 14 January 2025 was the expected approval date.
- Component 1 (US$148 million) will complete the remaining bulk water infrastructure started and significantly advanced under the first project, including lining 24 km of tunnel, and Component 2 (US$56 million) the original design of the Wardanieh plant.
- World Bank, press release, 15 January 2025. worldbank.org.
- The Board approved US$257.8 million.
- World Bank, Implementation Completion and Results Report ICR00441, Greater Beirut Water Supply Project P103063, 16 December 2025. documents.worldbank.org.
- MENA Water Review major projects register and PPP pipeline — compiled from procurer publications, development-bank project pages and trade reporting; each record names its source.
At closing the tunnel conveyors were 75 percent achieved (24 km excavated, lining pending), the transmission pipelines 84 percent (about 8.4 of 10 km) and the Wardanieh plant 89 percent complete; US$199.06 million of the US$200 million IBRD loan disbursed and the US$90 million additional financing not used; project budget US$370 million at appraisal and US$561.7 million at closing (components 434.0, 112.7 and 15.0), with cost overruns leaving a financing gap of around US$219 million at closing, which the second project is to cover.