SUEZ & partners commence construction of Philippines’ largest seawater desalination plant

SUEZ, a global leader in environmental services, and JEMCO, a premier construction company in the Philippines, together with Metro Pacific Water, a key water and wastewater infrastructure investor fully-owned by Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), commenced the construction of a seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination facility in Metro Iloilo— the largest of its kind in the Philippines. Slated to be completed in 24 months, this project will help address the critical shortage of drinking water in the region, supplying sustainable and reliable potable water to local communities.

The existing fresh water sources in Metro Iloilo have become severely strained and are no longer capable of meeting the increasing demand of the region. This situation has been exacerbated by seasonal fluctuations in rainfall, disrupting the replenishment of these finite water supplies, revealing the urgent need to identify and develop alternative sources of water to ensure the long-term sustainability of the region.

To tackle the region’s shortage of potable water, Metro Pacific Water awarded to SUEZ and JEMCO a project to design, build and operate a seawater reverse osmosis desalination facility. The SWRO desalination plant will have an estimated production capacity of 66,500 cubic meters per day, with over 97% of which to be supplied to the residents as drinking water, benefiting approximately 50,000 households. The remaining part will be used for the production of demineralised water to support the operation of the adjacent power plant.

As a leader of circular solutions for water and waste services for more than 160 years, SUEZ has 50 years of experience in seawater desalination, with over 260 desalination plants designed and built worldwide. This plant will incorporate SUEZ’s flagship technologies, such as the SeaDAF™ Filter which combines the dissolved air flotation technology and dual media gravity filter to treat seawater and remove algae, turbidity, suspended solids, and colloidal particles to reach a quality suitable to feed to the reverse osmosis membranes. Its compact design makes it suitable for installations where space is a premium.

A testimony to the strong partnership between SUEZ and JEMCO, this is the second project that the two entities have worked on together, with the first being a key water reclamation facility in Muntinlupa City, Metro Manila. SUEZ has a strong presence in the Philippines with a well-established local engineering platform and a professional team of local talents. The collaboration will leverage SUEZ’s expertise and technologies in seawater desalination, and benefit from the strong local experience and construction capabilities of JEMCO.

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