Cannon Artes Breaks Ground Supplying Massive Industrial Wastewater Treatment and Water Reuse Plant in Qatar

Cannon Artes is building a large-scale, advanced wastewater treatment and water reuse plant in one of the top three petrochemical complexes in the Middle East region. The system will cater to the water recovery needs of a gigantic polyolefin plant in Qatar, and when in operation will treat up to 25,000 cubic metres a day of effluent water and cooling-tower-blow-down water. With a recovery capacity of 780 cubic metres per hour, the facility is set up to minimise the discharge rate, adopting a Near-Zero-Liquid-Discharge philosophy. This greatly exceeds regulatory requirements and underlines Cannon Artes’s ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability, recovering and reusing nearly 80% of the effluent water thus largely surpassing the regulatory requirements. 

Cannon Artes was chosen as the supplier of choice earlier this year, due to our proven ability to deliver large-scale and complex industrial wastewater treatment solutions that meet the highest environmental and efficiency standards. To give an idea of the project’s scale, the water treatment plant alone spans an area comparable to three football fields, with more than 1,600 reverse osmosis membranes, 360 ultrafiltration modules, and over 17,000 square metres of active MBR membrane surface.

Alessio Liati, Sales Director at Cannon Artes

The wastewater treatment and reuse plant facility supplied by Cannon Artes is part of a nearly USD2 billion project focused on building a new polyethylene plant featuring two polymerisation units, with an overall capacity approaching 2 million tons per year. Utilising the most advanced membrane technologies, the plant manages two types of wastewater discharges: industrial effluents undergo biological treatment using Cannon Artes’ proprietary EmbioArt® Membrane BioReactor (MBR) while cooling water blowdown is treated and reused with ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) technologies. The total treatment capacity approaches 1,000 cubic metres per hour.

The scope also includes a 600 cubic metres per hour remineralisation plant designed to increase pH and reduce recovered water corrosivity. Equipped with six advanced calcite filters, this facility raises the bar for industrial remineralisation technology.

Although large-scale implementations like this are rare, the Qatari project underlines Cannon Artes’ unique ability to integrate all the necessary building blocks for such a complex contract—from process design to procurement, manufacturing, assembly, testing, and delivery. All plant components are fully customised to fit the client’s specifications, including advanced technologies such as EmbioArt® MBR, UF, and RO, and ensuring the highest efficient and environmentally sustainable water-reuse solutions currently available on the market.

Construction began in August 2024, with infrastructure expected to be completed in six months, by early 2025 – an impressive timeline given the project’s complexity. Full mechanical completion is scheduled for Q4 2025.

This state-of-the-art wastewater treatment and reuse facility solidifies Cannon Artes’ reputation as a trusted partner for large-scale, complex industrial projects worldwide. Beyond the oil and gas, chemical, and petrochemical sectors, Cannon Artes has delivered customised effluent treatment plants (ETPs) and wastewater treatment (WWT) solutions in over 80 countries, working with leading global players across industries such as pharmaceuticals, pulp and paper, textiles, and food and beverage.

About Cannon Artes
Since 1977, Cannon Artes has been a global leader in providing tailored water and wastewater treatment plants, blending expert engineering, vast know-how, and Italian craftsmanship. As part of the Cannon Group, the company has enhanced its focus on innovation and international reach, helping clients worldwide reduce their water footprint and treat over 500 million cubic metres of water annually. With a rich portfolio of proprietary technologies, Cannon Artes addresses the demands of the most challenging industrial sectors, including energy, petrochemicals, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, food, and pulp & paper. The company specialises in critical areas such as Produced and Injection Water Treatment, Condensate Polishing, and Effluent Water Treatment & Reuse. Cannon Artes is qualified with major global and regional energy players. To learn more, visit: www.cannonartes.com