Northumbrian Water and Modern Water JV to build wastewater treatment facility in Gibraltar

The Government of Gibraltar has selected the Northumbrian Water and Modern Water Services joint-venture (JV) to design, construct, finance and operate a wastewater plant at Europa Point.

Under the £22m construction contract, the JV partners will build a plant to treat wastewater from 60,000 residents and workforce of Gibraltar.

The construction phase will be followed by operation and maintenance of the facility for 20 years.

Modern Water Services will be the lead design and build contractor for the project, which will be spearheaded by Gibraltar’s Technical Services Department and the Department of the Environment.

The proposed facility will be built on a small scale due to limited availability of land and will use the existing underground tunnels in the Rock. It will be completely enclosed and landscaped.

Measures will also be taken to meet odour-control and other emission standards, Northumbrian Water said.

Gibraltar has two water systems, one supplying potable water and the other providing desalinated sea water for sanitary purposes. The saline content of the non-potable wastewater is a challenge for the existing wastewater treatment facilities in the region, the companies said.

Northumbrian Water commercial director said: "We are delighted to have been chosen to deliver this exciting next step in wastewater treatment development for Gibraltar, which will enable Gibraltar to comply with the EU’s Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive."

Modern Water has been working in the British overseas territory for the last five years to develop its forward osmosis (FO) desalination technology.

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Image: The proposed wastewater facility will use the existing underground tunnels in the Rock. Photo: courtesy of AquilaGib / Wikipedia.