After an open tender that received 16 bids from seven local and international companies, it has been decided that Keppel Infrastructure Holdings will design, build and operate the fourth desalination plant in Singapore. According to water agency PUB, the plan is slated to begin operations in 2020, and will supply water to PUB for a 25-year concession period at a first-year price of $1.07867 per cubic metre.
The new plant will be situated in Marina East, and it’ll be the first in the nation with the facilities to treat sea water and fresh water from the Marina Reservoir. Singapore’s water supply will receive an additional 30 million gallons of water each day after it starts operations.
PUB announced that the plant will help in Singapore’s drought resilience and increase the reliability of water supply for the city and eastern areas. As of now, 25 percent of our water supply is contributed by desalination, while the rest comes from local catchments, imported water from Johor and NEWater. Plans are in the pipeline to increase Singapore’s desalination capacity to 30 percent.
