Marsa Alam Is Getting a 10,000-Cubic-Metre-a-Day Desalination Plant and a New Sewage System

Work is under way in Marsa Alam on two large water and sanitation projects — a seawater desalination plant and an integrated sewage system — according to an account of the National Authority for Potable Water and Sanitary Drainage's programme published by Youm7 on 14 October.

The authority describes both as part of a wider set of projects across Red Sea governorate towns, intended to keep basic services ahead of Marsa Alam's building growth and rising tourist activity.

The sewage scheme

The integrated sewage project for Marsa Alam is sized for 12,500 to 25,000 cubic metres a day, a range the authority says covers the town's present and future needs. It comprises:

• new gravity sewer networks
• three pumping stations
• force mains linking them
• a secondary treatment plant working on the extended-aeration system

The authority presents the treatment plant as an environmental measure for the marine and desert surroundings of the town.

The desalination plant

Field work is also continuing on a seawater desalination plant for Marsa Alam with an output of 10,000 cubic metres a day. It consists of a desalination unit, a sea intake built to current technical standards, and transmission mains connecting the plant's output directly to the town's main water network. The stated purpose is drinking water for residential areas and tourist facilities, and reducing any shortfall that appears during peak tourist seasons.

What has not been published

The report gives no completion date, no cost and no contractor for either project, and does not say how much of either has already been built. There is therefore no published timetable for residents or hotels to plan around.

This follows our report of 10 October that Red Sea towns need about 90,000 cubic metres more water a day than they currently receive, with five new plants intended to close that gap.