VA Tech Wabag-Metito combine bags Rs 4400-crore Chennai desal project
India’s leading water infrastructure developer VA Tech Wabag has secured South East Asia’s largest seawater desalination project in a joint venture with Metito Overseas Limited.
The Rs 4400-crore order from the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB0 is to design, build and operate (DBO) a 400 million litres per day (MLD) seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination project in Chennai.
The project is being funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the scope of the DBO order includes design, engineering, procurement, construction,installation, testing andcommissioning of the 400 MLD plant and the associated seawater intake system over a period of 42 months, followed by 20 years of operation & maintenance (O&M).
The desalination process will include lamella clarifiers, dissolved airflotation system, gravity dual media filters followed by reverse osmosis and re-mineralization to produce clean drinking water which will be further distributed by CMWSSB to the residents of South Chennai.
The Chennai-based VA Tech Wabag said the project is a landmark one for Chennai and will help enhance the water security for the city of Chennai through a stable source of drinking water in the form of desalination.
This project will also make Chennai the desalinationcapital of India with almost 750 MLD of desalinated water to be produced along its coast. With the 400 MLD SWRO desalination plant, VA Tech Wabag will be responsible for about 70 per cent of the water production through desalination in Chennai.
“This is historically the largest ever order for Wabag. I’m extremely happy that we have been awarded this massive, prestigious and important desalination plant order in Chennai from our trusted customer CMWSSB, with whom our association spans over two decades now. Wabag has won this order against global competition reinforcing our technological superiority and competitiveness in the global desalination space. This is a testament to our leadership……. and puts Wabag on an inclined growth path for the future…. “, said VA Tech Wabag CEO (India Cluster) Shailesh Kumar.
The Chennai project is the first major order announcement for VA Tech Wabag during the current financial year ended March 2024. The company recently bagged a Rs 800-crore DBO project for reconstruction, expansion and operation of Pagla sewage treatment plant (STP) with a capacity of 200 MLD in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The project of Dhaka Water Supply & Sewerage Authority (Dhaka WASA) is being funded by multilateral funding agencies like World Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) under Dhaka Sanitation Improvement Project (DSIP).
The scope of the Dhaka project includes design, engineering, supply, construction, installation and commissioning of the 200 MLD STP followed by operation & maintenance (O&M) for a period of 60 months. This project has the potential to be expanded to 600 MLD in the future, fuelled by city’s growing needs.
This plant will operate based on activated sludge treatment process, where it uses green fuel (biogas) generated during the wastewater treatment process producing green energy required for running the plant. This process also meets the environmental norms and the production of renewable energy contributes to cause of combating global climate change.
“I’m extremely happy that we are following our stated strategy of making inroads into new markets and focusing on projects funded by multilateral agencies. This project was won against international competition based on our technological superiority & competitiveness and is yet another significant milestone for Wabag. We are thankful to our client for the confidence they have reposed in us and this project will surely be a key reference in our journey”, said VA Tech Wabag’s Regional Business Head (South Asia) Arvind Dullu, in a recent statement.
