BLOG
July 21st, 2020
Via SmartWater Magazine, a report on Egypt’s planned desalination focus in the next five years:
Egyptian authorities announced that the country will implement a five-year plan worth 45.18 billion Egyptian pounds (approximately US$2.8 billion) to construct 47 desalination plants, reports Afrik21.
According to the media, this plan is in line with the policy of governments from Northern Africa to promote the exploitation of unconventional water resources.
Egypt is located in an arid -to semi-arid zone, which already relies on seawater desalination for its drinking water supply. The Egyptian government plans to carry out its ambitious project by building 47 desalinations facilities in the governorates of North and South Sinai, Port Said, Ismailia, Suez, Dakahlia, Kafr E-Sheikh, Beheira Matrouh, and the Red Sea.
The main objective of the five-year plan is to produce 2.44 million m³ per day by 2025. The operations will be monitored by the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA), the General Organization for Physical Planning, and the Holding Company for Water and Wastewater (HCWW).
The stages of the plan
The government programme first aims to fortify water supply in underserved areas, especially in North and South Sinai, the Red Sea and Matrouh. For this, the government will construct 19 seawater desalination plants with a cumulative capacity of 312,000 m³ per day. The first stage of the programme is to cost 6.84 billion Egyptian pounds (around 428.6 million dollars).
The second stage of the visionary project includes the construction of seven seawater desalination plants, which are to produce 335,000 m³ of drinking water per day. The investment for this stage is of 6.6 billion Egyptian pounds (more than 413 million dollars).
During the third part of the project, 19 reverse osmosis plants will be built with a capacity of 1.29 million m³ of drinking water per day, and an investment of 29.64 billion Egyptian pounds (1.85 billion dollars).
The final part of the project will see the construction of two desalination plants and will provide a drinking water production capacity of 100,000 m³ per day.
Afrik21 reports that the Egyptian government wants to implement its policy by relying on private actors. That is why it has opened up the desalination sector to public-private partnerships (PPPs).