Djibouti: inauguration of the desalination plant in Doraleh

This plant, the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, is a unique installation for the production of drinking water from renewable energy. Named PEPER (Production d'eau potable par énergie renouvelable), it is part of the "Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All)" initiative of the United Nations General Assembly's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

This unit, with a treatment capacity of 22,500 m³/day, will help supply nearly 250,000 people with drinking water. This number will double by 2022, guaranteeing a total production capacity of 45,000 m³/day.

As a reminder, this design/build/operate project is divided into 4 phases:

• Stage 1: The desalination plant 
• Stage 2: Maritime works for the installation of 2 underwater pipes (seawater collection at a depth of 20 m and brine discharge respectively in DN 1400 and DN 1200 mm)
• Stage 3: A 700 mm diameter pipeline (in GRP - Glass Fiber Reinforced Polyester) 10 km long and a 5,000 m³ vitrified steel tank, to connect the plant to the city's drinking water distribution network.
• Stage 4: Operation, production and maintenance of the desalination plant for 5 years

The Eiffage Génie Civil teams are very proud to be involved in this project, which guarantees the population of Djibouti a sufficient quantity of quality water.

The operation was financed for the most part by the European Union, and placed under the control of the Djibouti Ministry of Economy and Finance in charge of Industry and under the delegated control of the Djibouti Ministry of Agriculture. The National Office of Water and Sanitation of Djibouti (Onead) is the project manager and the Cabinet Merlin (France) is the delegated project manager.

Photos Credit: Eiffage Génie Civil