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PetroSA Invests R80 Million towards Desalination Plant for Drought-Stricked Mossel Bay

Wednesday, 02 June 2010 07:58

Cape Town, 26 May 2010 - PetroSA, the National Oil Company of South Africa, will invest R80 million towards the construction of a 200m3/hr (cubic meters per hour) desalination plant to alleviate the impact of drought in Mossel Bay and the Southern Cape.

The plant will provide 5 mega-litres of water per day, and should address PetroSA’s water requirements for operating its Gas-to-Liquid (GTL) refinery in Mossel Bay.

The project will see PetroSA join forces with the Mossel Bay Municipality in the endeavour to desalinate sea-water for use by the company and the town. It is envisaged that the desalination plant should be operational by November 2010.

According to the Mossel Bay Municipality, the town is facing its worst drought in 130 years. The drought has reached such critical proportions that the Eden District area of the Southern Cape has been declared a disaster Area.

The water level in the Wolwedans Dam, which PetroSA utilises to operate the GTL refinery, is an underwhelming 12, 5% and it is projected that no more water will be available by October 2010.

Over the last couple of months PetroSA has introduced several measures to save and manage water usage in Mossel Bay. These measures include the:

• The recycling of 60 m3/h of storm water at a cost of R8 million.
• The recycling of 170 m3/h of treated effluent and,
• A R22, 5 million investment in an effluent water purification project run by the Mossel Bay Municipality.

These improvements are significant for the 600m3/hr water requirement of the GTL Refinery and should mitigate the water supply risk to the Refinery.

PetroSA has also encouraged its employees to participate in the water saving campaign. Employees are therefore encouraged to report any potable water and firewater leaks for immediate repairs.

The desalination plant will be constructed at PetroSA’s Logistics Base, close to the Mossel Bay harbour. The Logistics Base lay-down area presents the following advantages:

• It is large enough to accommodate the desalination plant,
• Existence of sufficient power supply,
• It is in close proximity to the GTL Refinery water supply line,
• The area is currently zoned for industrial use. There is low visual, noise impact foreseen,
• Suitable sea conditions for water extraction.

The Mossel Bay Municipality has appointed SSI Engineers and Environmental Consultants as a managing contractor. This company has also been responsible for all other seawater desalination projects in the Southern Cape area (Sedgefield, Knysna, George and Plettenberg Bay) as well as the Mossel Bay sewerage purification facility.

For more information please contact:

Thabo Mabaso
Company Spokesperson
Cell: 084-466-3942
Tel: 021-929-3365
Thabo.mabaso@petrosa.co.za