Suez Environnement : selected to build and operate the largest desalination plant on the American continent, in Rosarito, Mexico

On June 15 2016, the Secretariat of Infrastructure and Urban Development of the Mexican State of Baja California and the State Commission for Water announced their decision in favour of the consortium, comprising NSC Water, NuWater and SUEZ, to build and operate a desalination plant.

SUEZ and its partners were selected to design, equip, operate and finance the new desalination plant in the municipality of Playas de Rosarito, to address the issue of water stress in the region.

The plant will be built in two stages. First, the building work will start in 2017, with a view to producing almost 190 000 m3 of drinking water per day within three years. In the second phase of the project, due to start from 2019, the plant will double its output of drinking water by 2024, reaching a total capacity of 380,000 m3 per day.

The agreement will also provide for the operation of the desalination plant for 37 years.

The project will secure drinking water supplies in the coastal region of Baja California, using resources that are already available - seawater is made fit for consumption using the reverse osmosis desalination technology - and proposing an innovative public-private partnership business model.