The Hindu Business Line : Degremont signs deal with Mumbai civic body for water treatment

Mumbai, Jan 28 Water treatment company, Degrémont, a subsidiary of Suez Environment, has signed a contract with Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai for the design, construction and a four-year operation of one of the largest water treatment plants in the country. The project cost is estimated at Rs. 340 crore.

The company has a presence in over 70 countries and sales of €1 billion in 2006.

The Mumbai plant will treat 9.9 lakh cubic metres of water and supplement the Bhandup plant here.

Built by Degrémont in 1981, the existing plant has a capacity of 1.91 million metres per day capacity.

The Union Government will finance 30 per cent of the cost, the State 20 per cent and the Municipal Corporation the balance.

Degrémont will provide the plant with its own filtration and decantation technologies. The contract is to be executed in 48 months. The order includes a treatment process and about 160 tonnes of sludge will be treated per day by a thickening and centrifugation process.

Delhi project

The Delhi Jal Board recently awarded Degrémont a contract for design, construction and 10-year operation of a wastewater treatment and reuse plant at Okhla at a cost of Rs 150 crore.

Funded by a loan from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), the -1.365 cubic metre capacity plant will take 30 months for commissioning. The treated water produced by the plant will be mainly recycled for use in irrigation. The wastewater can be directed into the natural environment and serve to improve the water quality of the river Yamuna. The sludge treatment plant will also have a biogas recovery unit and energy produced will be fed to the wastewater treatment plant, said Mr A. Vidyavathsai, Chief Operating Officer, Degrémont.

Pan India presence

Degrémont has been in India since 1954 and completed over 130 installations, including drinking water plants in Bangalore for 1.5 million inhabitants and more recently in Delhi for a 3.5 million population.