Seawater desalination plans takes vonMELYN to Siemens as deadline looms

vonMELYN, the Mount Vema registered company responsible for electricity supply, water, sewage, waste management and recycle, reached out to Siemens, the German company to help build the City of Mount Vema desalination plant.

Saltwater will be desalinated in Mount Vema not only to produce water suitable for human consumption and irrigation, but also to produce salt, the by-product of desalination.

The use of desalinated water for consumption is not new. Desalination is used on many seagoing ships, including cruise ships and submarines. Along with recycled wastewater, desalinated water is one of the few rainfall-independent water sources.  

Desalinated water is usually healthier than water from rivers and ground water, and there is less salt and limescale in it.  According to the International Desalination Association, in June 2015, 18,426 desalination plants operated worldwide, producing 86.8 million cubic meters per day, providing water for 300 million people.

Seawater desalination according to Siemens, is an energy-intensive and therefore costly process. That’s why energy efficiency plays an extremely important role in ensuring economical plant operation. The company states on its website, that with perfectly matched components such as enclosures, bearings, active parts, ventilation, and cooling system, Siemens can supply the right motor for every need.

The desalination plant, according to people at vonMELYN, may be affordable long term, as it is often unmanned and are managed remotely from a central control room. The main challenge therefore according to Siemens lies in the maintenance and modernization of PC-based control systems.