The Dhaka Water Supply & Sewerage Authority (WASA) has awarded SUEZ and Veolia the contract to build and operate the upcoming Gandharbpur drinking water production plant in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, after an international call for tender by Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (WASA). 

 

The contract, worth approximately €275 million as a cumulative total, will be executed by a joint venture established between SUEZ and Veolia (through a subsidiary of Veolia Water Technologies) as equal partners. 

 

The project is to be funded by the Asian Development Bank, the French Development Agency (AFD), the European Investment Bank and the Bangladeshi government.

 

Drinking water demand set to double by 2030

 

The fast-growing city of Dhaka faces a rapidly diminishing supply of groundwater, which is the main source of drinking water for its 11 million inhabitants. Due to urban and population growth, needs for drinking water are expected to double by 2030, whilst the region’s groundwater levels are falling by two to three metres each year. 

 

To meet this challenge, the Bangladeshi government has launched a programme – the Dhaka Water Supply Project – to preserve the region’s groundwater by sourcing 80 per cent of the water needed by Dhaka’s inhabitants from surface water (compared to 20 per cent currently).

 

A 500,000m3/day mega-plant

 

The contract includes the design, construction and operation of a drinking water production plant consisting of a raw water intake, 21km of pipeline and a treatment plant in the Gandharbpur area of Dhaka. With a capacity of 500,000m3/day, the plant will treat water from the Meghna river to provide drinking water to around 4.3 million Dhaka residents.

 

The contract provides for a four-year plant design and construction phase, which will be followed by the operation and maintenance of the plant for a three-year period. The two partners will ensure the progressive transfer of know-how and expertise to WASA employees.