Declining underground water reserves in the coastal area are putting NamWater under immense pressure to continue to provide the commodity uninterrupted, an official has revealed.
According to NamWater CEO Abraham Nehemiah, the utility is now racing to finalise the implementation and commissioning of a desalination plant.
He said local authorities are experiencing a shortage of their underground source thus the solution is to set up another desalination plant, which is envisioned to be situated at the existing Orano plant which was initially established to supply the uranium mine.
Nehemiah also said there are mines lined up to open in the Erongo region, and one of the requirements is the availability of reliable water, thus security of supply is crucial.
“We are moving, and I am confident by the end of this year we shall see something tangible. At this stage, we do not have figures of how much it will cost until the design of the plant is complete. Pressure is mounting on us, and we now have a team that is dedicated to this project. Once the design is complete, we shall move to the financing model, and immediately after procurement and construction kicks in,” he stated.
It is estimated that the desalination plant will cost about N$2 billion, and is set to supply towns such as Henties Bay, Swakopmund, and Walvis Bay, Arandis, Uis and settlements in Daures. As work progresses, the plant will be able to supply water to the capital city, and in the long run, Botswana.
In the same vein, NamWater has assured the public in the central regions that there won’t be any water shortage in the next two years, despite the poor rainfall received. This has resulted in minimal water inflows to the main dams which supply Windhoek.
The dam levels of Omatako, Von Bach and Swakoppoort are currently holding a combined 36.1% as opposed to 51.3% recorded at the same in 2021/22.
NamWater has begun with large-scale upgrades of its infrastructure, specifically replacing aging pipelines, which continuously break down, thus impeding the normal water provision.
The utility spends close to N$700 million annually and nothing less than N$500 million on maintenance, according to Nehemiah.
Nehemiah made these remarks at a media briefing following a stakeholder engagement to evaluate the effectiveness of previously adopted strategies, with a focus on the current situation regarding water supply to Central Areas of Namibia.
“Appropriate interventions were developed to ensure water supply security over the next two rainy seasons. Therefore, there is no need for one to panic nor will there be a crisis, this is because of the additional water sources that will supplement existing ones.
“Hence, the level of water in dams should not worry us, there won’t be any catastrophe. In fact, 8.5 million cubic meters will be tapped from City of Windhoek ground water, and an additional 5.84 million cubic meter from Wingoc reclaimed potable water. A further 12.01 million cubic meters will also be drawn from the northern Karst ground as of 1 July,” Nehemiah said.
NamWater will work in collaboration with the CoW to ensure the security of water supply.
Aging infrastructure on the northern water supply stream from Swakoppoort to Von Bach for further transfer and purification as well as the rehabilitation of the canal from Kombat are some of the other projects that were discussed for implementation.
“With regard to the canal, what we were dealing with last year was work from Okakarara to Omatako, currently with no water as we are busy upstream in the area of Rietfontein. We have work of about two weeks remaining, and in July we should be pumping, to Omatako then further to Von Bach,” he said.
These massive projects will come at a huge cost, and the CEO says NamWater’s tariffs need to be adjusted to offset rising inflation and associated costs.
The entity has for the past four years made attempts to have the tariffs adjusted, but these requests continue to gather dust.
“This year we have submitted another recommendation and hope it will be considered. We understand how difficult life has become for everyone economically, from fuel to electricity. These are costs that we absorb to ensure all have access to water,” he said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform Calle Schlettwein a week ago said NamWater charges were quite high compared to the regional peers, thus he cautioned against making water affordable to an average individual. This comes at the backdrop of clients owing approximately N$1.5 billion.
