The Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) has begun work to lay pipelines to draw seawater and discharge brine from the upcoming third desalination plant at Nemmeli. The plant will have a capacity to treat 150 million litres of seawater a day (mld).
Over 50% of the construction of seawater intake sump, ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis, and dissolved air flotation, in the plant has been completed so far.
The CMWSSB has laid cofferdams (a structure that enables work to lay pipelines for the desalination plant). The offshore work, including dredging of the sea to lay the pipeline, is considered a significant part of the project as it can be taken up only when the weather is conducive. The size of the seawater intake pipeline would be about 2,250 mm in diameter.
According to sources, the ₹1,516.82 crore plant was expected to be ready by 2023. Moreover, over 80% of the work had been finished to lay a pipeline for 47.35 km to distribute treated water from the plant to Pallavaram. This work would be over by the year-end.
On Friday, Municipal Administration and Water Supply Secretary Shiv Das Meena inspected the work executed near Muttukadu and instructed officials to engage additional labourers and machinery to complete the work within the stipulated time.
The project was started in October 2020. Nearly nine lakh residents in Velachery, Madipakkam, Sholinganallur, Alandur, and Pallavaram would get water supply from the plant.
