Biwater has been awarded a further design and build turnkey contract for a water treatment plant in the Dominican Republic. The new plant will supply drinking water to the city of Nagua and its surroundings on the north coast of the Caribbean island for Client Instituto Nacional Aguas Potables y Alcantarillados.

The project is funded by the Government of the Dominican Republic and supported by a loan from the US Exim bank.

Nagua, a city with a population of 60,000 people, will benefit from the supply of 26 Mld of water with the surrounding villages also receiving 6 Mld. The contract became effective in March 2006 and the design stage is now nearing completion. The site team started work on site in July and has made good progress to date. The contract consists of a concrete dam, 36 kilometres of 800/600 millimetre diameter ductile iron raw water pipeline, two pressure filtration treatment plants, bolted steel water storage plants and 65 kilometres of welded high density polyethylene distribution pipework. Work on this project is on target and by the end of 2006 over eight kilometres of the raw water pipeline had already been laid.

Due to the remote nature of the site, roads have had to be constructed to gain access to the dam site and one of the treatment plants and great care has been taken to ensure minimum impact on the environment. Until the roads and bridges were constructed the site teams faced treks to the works areas, and had to wade or swim across the rivers to reach the pipe route and dam.

A reliable source of drinking water should significantly improve the attractiveness of Nagua for development as a holiday resort, with its unspoilt beaches and nearby national parks. Nagua is also close to the breeding area for Humpback whales, which can be seen from January to March.