The French group Eiffage in partnership with Spain-based Tedagua, which specializes in water treatment and is a subsidiary of the Cobra Group, completed a seawater desalination plant in Djibouti, reports Afrik21.
The facility, which is located in Doraleh, located five kilometers west of Djibouti City, was inaugurated this week by Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, President of Djibouti. The plant was constructed to improve the supply of potable water, in a country that faces repeated water stress.
The desalination plant is powered by a neighboring wind farm and is one of the only wind-powered water treatment plants in Africa.
Merci au Président @IsmailOguelleh pour son message: «Nos remerciements vont naturellement à l’endroit de l’UE qui nous a accordé l’aide nécessaire pour que ce projet aboutisse. Je tiens à dire que ce grand partenaire mérite la reconnaissance et l’amitié de tous les Djiboutiens.» pic.twitter.com/rRx6hVlNdM
— UE à Djibouti (@UEaDjibouti) March 17, 2021
Approximately 250,000 citizens will be served by the Doraleh reverse osmosis plant that has a capacity of 22,500 m3 of water per day. Local authorities have already announced that they wish to boost the capacity of the facility to 45,000 m3 per day once the Peper project (Production of drinking water by renewable energy), launched in 2017, is completed. With this extension, up to 500,000 Djiboutians will be served.
Eiffage and Tedagua, which will operate the desalination plant for the next five years, built a 5,000 m3 control reservoir and laid 8.5 km of 700 mm diameter pipes as part of the project, connecting the plant to the drinking water distribution network of the town of Doraleh.
The Peper project is an essential course for Djibouti as it will help the country embark on the development of non-conventional water resources, a necessity in a drought-stricken part of Africa. The project was made possible with the help of the European Union (EU) that financed €73 million and the Djibouti government €5.5 million.
