Chennai Metro Water Board plans to revamp Minjur desalination plant

CHENNAI: The Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) is planning to assess and prepare a detailed project report about the current status of the India’s first desalination plant in Minjur for revamping and rehabilitation, and to bring the plant to its full capacity of 100 million litres per day (MLD).

To meet the gap between the city’s water demand and supply, the CMWSSB is inducting several projects including commissioning of new desalination plants.

At this juncture, it has moved to revamp and rehabilitate the Minjur desal plant as it has gradually dipped in performance and failed to achieve its full capacity in recent times.

According to CMWSSB, the quantity of water produced from the plant declined gradually and the quality too had deteriorated considerably as the previous contractor Chennai Water Desalination Limited did not take any corrective action to arrest the issue. Hence, the competent authority, which is CMWSSB, terminated the contract and is looking for a private consultant to conduct a conditional assessment of the 100 MLD desalination plant in all aspects.

“The consultant must carry out the assessment and submit a report with cost estimates for rehabilitation and revamping the plant, which is immediately required for us to move further,” said an official with CMWSSB. “The agency should conduct a physical monitoring of all the major mechanical equipment such as sea water intake pumps and RO booster pumps, and also analyse all related data and records. Performance evaluation of the overall plant including flow rate, water quality parameters, treatment and energy efficiency, will become the key feature of the assessment.”

Further, conducting energy audits for the plant and pump house, and exploring opportunities for improving the energy grid through renewable energy sources in place of conventional power supply, are crucial features of the project. “We’re expecting that the tender will be floated soon and after finding the successful consultant, assessment will be completed within 30 days,” he added.

To cater the water needs of the city, Minjur desal plant was established and inaugurated by the then Chief Minister M Karunanidhi in July 2010. For the past 15 years, the desal plant had become a vital source for the residents of northern and central parts of the city. Since, the CMWSSB felt the performance of the plant had declined, it plans to revamp it after it received a DPR.