Rs 3,520-cr desalination project to be set up at Manori, BMC invites tenders
The plan for setting up this plant was floated in 2019 and in January 2022, the civic body appointed a consultant for carrying out a feasibility study for the plant and evaluate the designs.
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The tender cost also covers the operation and maintenance charges for 20 years. The plant is expected to produce 200 million litres of potable water per day by treating sea water that will be augmented to 400 million litres at a later stage. After much back and forth, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday invited tenders for its ambitious desalination plant project to be set up at Manori at an estimated cost of Rs 3,520 crore.
The tender cost also covers the operation and maintenance charges for 20 years. The plant is expected to produce 200 million litres of potable water per day by treating sea water that will be augmented to 400 million litres at a later stage.
According to civic officials, the water generated initially would be transferred to Dahisar, Borivali and Kandivali areas in the western suburbs, following which the supply system will be ramped up.
The project was taken up to tackle the issue of water scarcity in the megapolis. At present, Mumbai’s daily water supply comes from seven different lakes situated on the outskirts of Mumbai. The water from these lakes is channelled to every pocket in Mumbai after they are filtered in the Bhandup filtration unit.
Mumbai has a demand of 4,200 MLD of water daily, however, the BMC is able to supply only 3,850 MLD. “The cost of tender includes Rs 1,600 for construction and Rs 1,900 for maintenance and operation works up to a period of 20 years. Over the past few decades, the city’s population and demand for water has increased, therefore, this project is going to keep Mumbai’s future in mind in terms of water supply,” said P Velrasu, additional municipal commissioner (projects), who is spearheading this project.
The plan for setting up this plant was floated in 2019 and in January 2022, the civic body appointed a consultant for carrying out a feasibility study for the plant and evaluate the designs.
The idea of setting up this plant in Mumbai is based on the existing desalination plants in Israel. In 2021, the civic body in 2021 also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with an Israeli firm for creating a Detailed Project Report of this plant and officials said that the report has already been submitted to the BMC in the last quarter of 2022.
In 2022, the BMC earmarked a 12-hectare land at Manori village, a seaside hamlet in the northernmost end of suburban Mumbai for setting up this plant. According to the BMC’s blueprint, this eco-friendly plant and would operate throughout the year. The approximate cost of water procured will be 4-5 paisa per litre.
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