Israel’s Ministry of Finance published pre-qualification documents on 2 November for an international tender to design, finance, build, operate and maintain a second desalination plant in Western Galilee, with planned production of approximately 100 million cubic meters per year JFeed. The proposed “Western Galilee B” facility would be built south of Nahariya, adjacent to the existing desalination plant under construction JFeed.
Key takeaways
- Western Galilee B is planned to produce approximately 100 million cubic meters of desalinated water annually JFeed.
- The plant would be built south of Nahariya, next to the existing Western Galilee facility currently in advanced construction JFeed.
- Once both Western Galilee plants are completed, combined production capacity at the site is expected to reach approximately 200 million cubic meters annually JFeed.
- The tender is intended to select a concessionaire responsible for managing the project for 25 years under a public-private partnership JFeed.
- Israel’s desalination program also includes completing the first Western Galilee facility, upgrading and expanding the Ashkelon plant, and building a new facility in the Hefer Valley JFeed.
Tender opens for Western Galilee B
The special tenders committee for seawater desalination in the Accountant General’s Division at the Ministry of Finance published the pre-qualification documents for an international tender covering the full delivery cycle of the additional Western Galilee facility JFeed. At this stage, professional, engineering and financial capabilities of groups from Israel and other countries will be examined JFeed.
The committee includes representatives from the Ministry of Finance, the Water Authority, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, and Anbal Company JFeed. Publication of the pre-qualification stage marks the start of the tender process for a concessionaire that would manage the project for 25 years under a public-private partnership JFeed.
“Israel’s water security requires us to plan and build today the infrastructure that will be needed even decades from now,” said Accountant General at the Ministry of Finance CPA Michal Abadi-Boiangiu JFeed. She said construction of the additional facility is intended to increase desalination capacity, strengthen infrastructure redundancy and support water-supply continuity during extreme scenarios JFeed.
Capacity and program status
Western Galilee B is planned to operate at approximately 100 million cubic meters per year, while the combined capacity of the two Western Galilee plants is expected to reach approximately 200 million cubic meters annually after both are completed JFeed. The first Western Galilee facility is already in advanced stages of construction JFeed.
With all projects being advanced completed, Israel’s total desalination production capacity is expected to reach approximately 1.5 billion cubic meters per year in the early-to-mid next decade, compared with approximately 800 million cubic meters currently JFeed. The broader program covers the first Western Galilee facility, upgrades and expansion at Ashkelon, and a new Hefer Valley facility JFeed.
Specification read
The reported scale of Western Galilee B is approximately 100 million cubic meters of desalinated water per year, equivalent to about 273,972 cubic meters per day, or 274 MLD, using 365 days in the calculation JFeed. The source does not report the plant’s daily feed rate, recovery percentage, concentrate volume or brine-management requirements, so its raw-water demand and waste-treatment capacity cannot be calculated from the published information JFeed.
Seawater desalination normally requires intake and screening, pretreatment such as coagulation and filtration, membrane treatment, post-treatment and disinfection, followed by a residuals-management train; where site conditions require it, that train may extend to dissolved-air flotation or zero-liquid-discharge treatment JFeed. This tender bears directly on the production, pretreatment and residual-management scope, but the source does not identify the selected process, equipment package or required pretreatment or brine-treatment capacity JFeed.
If your plant looks like a large seawater-desalination project with feed measured in cubic meters per day, strict discharge and reuse obligations, and a need to anticipate concentrate handling, this means the next procurement package should define feed flow, recovery, concentrate chemistry and disposal performance before vendors are compared JFeed. Further detail is available through HydropureWater’s Water Purification and Municipal resources JFeed.
FAQ
What capacity is planned for the Western Galilee B desalination plant?
Western Galilee B is planned to produce approximately 100 million cubic meters of desalinated water annually, equivalent to about 274 MLD when divided by 365 days JFeed. The source does not provide the seawater intake rate, recovery percentage or concentrate-disposal design basis needed for a complete process-flow estimate.
How will the project be delivered?
The pre-qualification documents cover an international tender to design, finance, build, operate and maintain the facility JFeed. The process is intended to select a concessionaire to manage the project for 25 years under a public-private partnership, with the professional, engineering and financial capabilities of prospective groups assessed during pre-qualification JFeed.
What should suppliers clarify when scoping residuals treatment?
Suppliers should clarify the feed flow, recovery percentage, concentrate volume and chemistry, discharge route, reuse assumptions and any zero-liquid-discharge requirement JFeed. The published tender information identifies the annual production target but does not disclose the detailed pretreatment or residuals-treatment scope, so those technical inputs must be established before an equipment offer can be compared.
What is the current status of the adjacent Western Galilee plant?
The existing Western Galilee facility is in advanced stages of construction, and Western Galilee B would be built adjacent to it south of Nahariya JFeed. Once both plants are completed, combined capacity at the site is expected to reach approximately 200 million cubic meters annually JFeed.
