Tenders Are Invited For Seawater Airconditioning Environmental And Social Impact Assessment

Tenders are invited for Grenada: Seawater Airconditioning Environmental and Social Impact Assessment" A. PROJECT BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVESAs global temperatures rise and demand for cooling surges; the need for sustainable solutions becomes increasingly urgent. Absent improvements in technology and practices; energy for cooling needs will triple by 2050; straining local power grids and generating substantial harmful emissions. Cooling challenges are particularly acute in the Caribbean but fortunately; the Caribbean Sea presents an opportunity to address cooling in a sustainable way with seawater air-conditioning (SWAC). By tapping inexhaustible cold; deep seawater; SWAC replaces traditional mechanical chillers and in the process reduces energy consumption by up to 90%. SWAC systems are very simple. A pipeline fully resistant to seawater corrosion is installed from the shore to a depth of about 900 meters. Seawater at that depth has a consistent temperature of about 6 C; regardless of latitude. The cold seawater is pumped to the surface where it cools coastal facilities before being returned to the ocean. Experiences in the South Pacific and other regions demonstrate that marine life and coral reefs can thrive in areas where ocean water is reintroduced.SWAC is particularly promising to the Caribbean for several reasons: high electricity prices; heavy reliance on imported fossil fuels; favorable bathymetry and large and growing cooling needs along the shoreline. Roughly 20% of the regions GDP comes from tourism and air conditioning represents a staggering 55% of total electricity consumption in hotels. Given the high cost of electricity in the Caribbean; this places a considerable strain on the hospitality and tourism sectors competitiveness so a solution like SWAC is very compelling. In addition; the deep seawater brought to the surface for space cooling can also be used to drive many blue economy businesses. The waters temperature; purity and nutrient content make it very well-suited for aquaculture; enhanced agriculture; premium potable water and marine research.With support from PROBLUE; the World Banks Blue Economy Program and Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP); the World Bank analyzed challenges and benefits of SWAC in the Caribbean and identified the most promising islands for SWAC implementation. The team then did in-depth technical and economic design studies for the most promising sites; which included marine pipeline engineering; anchoring systems capable of withstanding Category 5 hurricanes; fully buried technical rooms to house pumps; heat exchangers; and an optimized distribution network. These studies can provide valuable insights for potential investors interested in scaling up this technology in the Caribbean and other Small Island Developing States (SIDS).In Grenada; the SWAC project on the southwestern coast was designed to meet the cooling needs of the Maurice Bishop International Airport; St. Georges University and two nearby major resorts. The feasibility study estimated that a district SWAC model could provide 3;500 tons of cooling with a US$50 million investment. The SWAC system would reduce electricity usage by 83%; avoid 21;000 barrels of fuel annually and achieve substantial cost savings compared to conventional cooling options. The World Bank seeks to conduct a comprehensive environmental and social impact assessments to ensure compliance with sustainability principles and best practices for the potential seawater air-conditioning project in Grenada.B. OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENTThe primary objectives are to: (i) conduct a comprehensive Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) in accordance with national environmental legislation; World Bank Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) requirements and international best practices; (ii) gather all available bathymetric and marine baseline survey data to inform pipeline routing; intake/outfall design; and potential environmental impacts; and (iii) recommend mitigation; monitoring; and management measures to minimize adverse effects on marine and coastal ecosystems.The ESIA will ensure that the environmental and social risks associated with the civil works and operational phases are identified and either avoided; minimized; reduced; or mitigated; while ensuring that the projects are environmentally and socially sound and sustainable.C. SCOPE OF WORKThe scope of work includes assessing the proposed SWAC system; locations; operational procedures; stakeholders; and risks and impacts. Under the supervision of World Bank; the consultant shall undertake the following tasks:Task 1: Description of the ProjectBriefly describe the location of the project site and indicate the area around the site that will be considered as part of the study area for the ESIA. Identify the projects areas (analysis of alternatives) of influence and delineated on maps of appropriate scales; showing the site layout; contiguous areas; and highlighting areas likely to be directly impacted by noise; sweater extraction and discharge points Tender Link : http://www.worldbank.org/en/about/corporate-procurement/business-opportunities/administrative-procurement?order=desc

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