Midsize Desalination Projects

You probably have to dig pretty deeply if you’re researching the state of the market for midsize desalination and otherwater treatment projects.

Until about five years ago, this tier of the market simply didn’t exist. Many water services companies and contractors are focused on landing big accounts but have paid little attention, if any, to governments and organizations that want to build midsize facilities.

This void, however, has been addressed by RWL Water, which specializes in providing desalination and other water services for that segment.

How Big Is Midsize?

What is a midsize desalination project? It’s one with a production capacity of roughly 30 megaliters (30,000 cubic meters) a day, Henry J. Charrabé, president and chief executive officer of RWL Water Global Operations, told  Desalination & Water Reuse  in a November 2015 interview. He said:

"This is where we’re focused. This is where we’re strong and we can give you probably the most competitive offer with the best technology available in that space."

In looking at production capacity, terminologies vary widely. But, roughly speaking, small desalination plants typically have a capacity of about 5 cubic meters a day. A large project is in the range of 100,000 cubic meters a day.

Most of the focus in recent years has been on so-called “mega ton” desalination facilities, a trend driven by continuing urban population growth. These plants, which have capacities of 1,000,000 cubic meters a day or more, are designed to serve thirsty, dense urban or water-strapped metropolitan areas.

Smaller Plant, Less Financial Risk

But, there’s no reason to restrict desalination solely to large-scale projects, according to industry experts. A benefit associated with siting a midsize project is clear: less financial risk. Corrado Sommariva, president of the International Desalination Association, explained:

"[T]he risk profile of a medium- to large-sized project is clearly more moderate than the risk profile of a mega ton project. This becomes an important factor in addressing the difficulty in securing the necessary level of investment associated with such developments in the current and near-term financial climate. […] limited recourse or non recourse loans could be easily made available for small- to mid-size plants. This type of investment presents a much more moderate risk profile and could be revisited for expansion or reduction in size in accordance with demand development."

The other advantage, he said, is these smaller projects can help evaluate and validate newer technologies coming out of research and development projects. Without a place in the market for medium-scale projects, technologies that can help address global future water challenges cannot be scaled up sufficiently.

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Taxonomy

• Treatment
• Desalination