The project consists of the extraction of seawater and its desalination in a reverse osmosis plant located in the Punta Zorro sector in the Caldera commune, and its elevation through impulsions to the different supply points.
On December 14 and in the Montt Varas Hall of the La Moneda Palace, the President of the Republic, Michelle Bachelet, participated in the signing of the contract with the INIMA-CVV consortium, a company that was awarded the construction of the first stage of the construction of a seawater desalination plant for Atacama.
The project consists of the extraction of seawater and its desalination in a reverse osmosis plant located in the Punta Zorro sector in the Caldera commune, and its elevation through impulsions to the different supply points. The construction of the plant will benefit the population of Caldera, Chañaral, Copiapó and Tierra Amarilla, currently fed from the Copiapó river aquifer.
The project will be executed in three stages: in the first it will reach a total capacity of 450 L/s; then to another 450 L/s, reaching a total of 900 L/s); and, finally, at a capacity of 300 L/s, completing the 1.200 L/s of treated water.
The State will finance the execution of the first part of the desalination plant, through the capitalization of ECONSSA SA through CORFO, so that the company can carry out the corresponding investments in the plant, which will subsequently be transferred to Aguas Chañar SA for its operation, maintenance and replacement. The INIMA-CVV consortium will have a period of 27 months to materialize it, it will have 3 months to prepare the start of the works and 2 years for the construction of the plant, which should be operating, at the latest, at the beginning of April 2020.