IDE Americas To Provide Reverse Osmosis Solution For Revitalization Of Seawater Desalination Facility In California

With IDE’s proven and energy-efficient solution, Santa Barbara desalination plant to help meet California’s growing water needs during historic drought

IDE Americas announced it has been selected to refurbish, operate and maintain the recommissioned Charles E. Meyer Desalination Plant in Santa Barbara, California. Under the city’s Design-Build-Operate (DBO) process, IDE was chosen to reactivate the plant for its proven experience, modular approach, and ability to meet the city’s short timeframe.

The Santa Barbara plant will help to address California’s growing water demands with IDE’s proven, energy-efficient reverse osmosis (RO) solution. It will initially produce 3,125 acre-feet per year (AFY) of high quality water, meeting 26 percent of the city’s water needs. The plant also has the option to expand to 7,500 AFY, and is scheduled to provide potable water by October 2016.

This project comes on the heels of IDE’s partnership with the Carlsbad Desalination Project, developed and owned by Poseidon Water. IDE has chosen Kiewit as its civil and electromechanical work contractor for the Santa Barbara plant based on its strong partnership in Carlsbad.

“California’s record-breaking drought is showing no sign of easing up anytime soon. This reinforces the need for a drought-proof solution such as water desalination,” said Mark Lambert, CEO of IDE Americas. “With this project in Santa Barbara, we look forward to increasing the reliability of the region’s water supply and expanding our footprint in the U.S. desalination market.”

“During a time of shrinking surface and groundwater supplies, the Santa Barbara desalination plant represents an alternative way to help meet the region’s rising need for potable water,” said Robert L. Roebuck, project manager for Santa Barbara’s public works department. “With IDE’s extensive experience designing and supplying equipment for over 400 desalination plants across the globe, including Carlsbad, we knew IDE would be the perfect partner to reactivate this plant.”

About IDE
A world leader in water treatment solutions, IDE specializes in the development, engineering, construction and operation of some of the world’s largest and most advanced thermal and membrane desalination facilities and industrial water treatment plants. IDE partners with a wide range of customers – municipalities, oil & gas, mining, refineries and power plants – on all aspects of water projects, and delivers approximately 2,400 acre-feet per day of high quality water worldwide.

We listen first so we can create the best solutions for your needs. We then bring technological leadership, proven reliability and consistent delivery to all our projects. Our highly experienced and dedicated team knows that strong partnerships lead to success and growth.

IDE’s specialization and long term experience with multi-parametrical process optimization results in lower water costs. This optimization allows us to achieve a significant reduction in energy consumption – 10 to 20 percent – while selecting the most appropriate membrane type and energy recovery system for each specific project. We also decrease energy losses by minimizing the pressure losses through pipes and reducing fouling through the membranes with innovative and patented membrane backwash solutions. For more information, visit www.ide-tech.com.