Construction of Mamelles sea water desalination plant, Senegal’s first large-scale seawater desalination plant, was recently inaugurated by President Macky Sall in Dakar with an aim to provide a safe and stable water supply to the people of the West African country through ensuring a highly sustainable water source.
The Senegalese president declared that the complex and unique project signifies a major milestone in the realization of the Emerging Senegal Plan (PSE), a massive program that is expected to put “this impoverished country” on the road to emergence by 2035.
Implementation and expectation for the Mamelles Sea Water Desalination Plant project
The project, developed by Société Nationale Des Eaux du Sénégal (SONES), will be carried out by Toyota Tsusho Corporation (“Toyota Tsusho”) together with major French construction company Eiffage Génie Civil (“Eiffage”) and major Indian water engineering company VA Tech Wabag (“Wabag”).
Scheduled to be completed in 2025, the plant will have a capacity of 100,000 m3/day, and it would help put a stop to the cuts that are poisoning the lives of many Dakar inhabitants. According to Sall, the plant’s commissioning, along with the renewal of 316 kilometres of a mainly dilapidated distribution network, will have a beneficial impact on a total of 16 municipalities.
The implementation of the project is estimated to cost 137 billion FCFA (210 million euros) and it will be financed by Senegal through a loan from Japans International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Senegal’s first seawater desalination plant environmental concerns
Fishermen working around the factory claimed that they were concerned about the plant’s impact on their business.
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Senegal’s first seawater desalination plant has been condemned by a citizen movement dubbed I’m fed up, according to one of its leaders, it could harm the environment and contaminate aquatic life.
In a press release, the Senegalese government announced that all the necessary studies were carried out to safeguard the marine ecosystem, the beach, and traditional sites.
