Veolia Wins Operation And Maintenance Contract For Desalination Plant At Cerro Lindo Mine In Peru

Cerro Lindo is a mine located south of Lima, in the Ica region, on the edge of the Topará River ravine. The river water is used by the local Chavín communities and downstream in the Topará Valley. Passing through an arid and desert region, the river’s low flow rate is a real challenge for developing the region’s agriculture. In 2007, Cerro Lindo became the first mining site in Peru to stop using river water for its mining operations. Its desalination plant supplies the site with industrial process water without weighing on the region’s water stress.

The seawater intake is on the Peruvian coast. The water is desalinated by Veolia using the reverse osmosis process, before being transported 40 km away at the Cerro Lindo site, which is at an altitude of 1,850 meters. The desalination plant has an industrial process water production capacity of 48 liters of water a second to meet the Cerro Lindo site’s needs. Starting in 2016, the output will be raised to 60 liters of desalinated water a second, that is, a 20% improvement in the plant’s performance from its current level. Veolia was selected for its capacity to ensure continuous production availability, and system and water treatment reliability in accordance with the most stringent safety and environmental standards.

“Seawater desalination for process water is a rapidly expanding activity in areas of Latin America suffering from water stress. By choosing Veolia, Milpo has confirmed that the Company’s solutions and expertise, especially in the area of water production for the mining industry, are crucial to ensuring high quality, environmentally friendly operations,” explains Ramon Rebuelta, Director Latin America Zone, Veolia.

Compañía Minera Milpo is a Peruvian company founded in 1949 and listed on the Lima stock exchange. Under a strategic partnership with Grupo Votorantimsince 2010, Milpo is active in the exploration, mining and sale of zinc, copper, lead, silver and gold. The company operates three mines in Peru and one in Chile. Milpo is the leading mining company in Peru for its use of desalinated seawater for operations.

About Veolia
Veolia group is the global leader in optimized resource management. With over 179,000 employees^* worldwide, the Group designs and provides water, waste and energy management solutions that contribute to the sustainable development of communities and industries. Through its three complementary business activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, preserve available resources, and to replenish them. In 2014, the Veolia group supplied 96 million people with drinking water and 60 million people with wastewater service, produced 52 million megawatt hours of energy and converted 31 million metric tons of waste into new materials and energy. Veolia Environnement (listed on Paris Euronext: VIE) recorded consolidated revenue of €24.4B^* in 2014. www.veolia.com

^(*) 2014 pro-forma figures, including Dalkia International (100%) and excluding Dalkia France.