Aqualia and GS Inima finish construction of the Djerba desalination plant
The new infrastructure will provide 50,000 m3 of drinking water per day and substantially contribute to the island's economic, social and environmental development.
Tunisia's Prime Minister Youssef Chahed inaugurated the plant together with Luis de Lope, Director of International Affairs at Aqualia.
The project was awarded by Tunisia's national water distribution utility (SONEDE) and jointly financed by the German Development Bank (KfW) and French Agency for Development (AFD).
Aqualia and GS Inima have finished construction of the new desalination plant on the Tunisian island of Djerba. The infrastructure will produce 50,000 m3 of drinking water per day, which will be expandable to 75,000 m3 per day. Once commissioned and operating, the desalination plant will substantially contribute to the economic, social and environmental progress of the island, the largest in terms of surface area for the entire Maghreb region and one of the most popular tourist destinations in Tunisia.
Prime Minister Youssef Chahed and members of the Tunisian government visited the new facilities, which will be the responsibility of Tunisia's national water distribution utility (SONEDE). This event was also attended by Tunisian political authorities, international organisations involved in financing the project (German Development Bank and French Agency for Development) and the press.
The design and construction project, half of which was executed by Aqualia and GS Inima, also included the seawater and effluent capture systems, well-water iron removal plant, product water pumping station and the installation of pipes to connect with the existing distribution network (23.7 kilometres of pipelines). The consortium's contract with SONEDE also contemplates the commissioning of the facilities and their management for a period of one year.
Aqualia Director of International Affairs Luis de Lope was present at this institutional event and stated that “the development of major water production projects through advanced desalination technologies such as this one at Djerba will be fundamental for meeting needs in areas such as the Mediterranean, where there is an elevated water demand.”
Aqualia has an extensive track record in desalination plants in North Africa. In addition to the two major seawater desalination plants (SWDP) built and managed in Algeria, namely SWDP Mostaganem (daily water production of 200,000 m3) and SWDP Cap Djinet (100,000 m3 daily), the SWDP El Alamein (150,000 m3 daily) is another large desalination plant currently being built in Egypt for the Egyptian Ministry of Defence.
