A consortium of Metito, Orascom and Cobra has won a contract to build a seawater desalination plant in Sfax, Tunisia.

The contract was awarded by the Societe Nationale d’Exploitation et de Distribution des Eaux (SONEDE).

The reverse osmosis (RO) Sfax desalination project is being fully funded by the Japanese International Cooperation Organisation (JICA), and is set to begin operations in February 2024.

Metito will carry out the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the project, which is estimated to be completed within 30 months. Once operational, the plant will have the capacity to provide 100,000 cubic metres of potable water a day (cm/d), with the possibility of doubling the capacity to 200,000 cm/d in the future.

In addition to the construction of the plant, which began in August 2021, the consortium will be responsible for operating and maintaining (O&M) the project for two years after its completion. The new desalination plant will play a critical role in advancing the growing relationship between Egypt and Tunisia, particularly in the water sector.

“Water is a key contributor to the socio-economic development, from industries, to families and farms. Water is also a scarce resource, and this is contributing to the surge in the global demand for seawater desalination. The new plant in Sfax will ensure that the local communities have access to a clean, secure, and sustainable water supply,” said Karim Madwar, managing director of Metito Africa following the announcement of the contract award.