Tseung Kwan O Desalination Plant, Awarded To ACCIONA, Comes Into Service

​The plant has been commissioned last week, which will enable Tseung Kwan O City to cope with the challenges of climate change and low rainfall.

The first stage of the Tseung Kwan O Desalination Plant, ubicated in Hong Kong, was commissioned last week, becoming a landmark for providing a new and stable water source that is not susceptible to climate change.

During the commissioning event, a spokesman for the Water Supplies Department (WSD) said "the TKODP is the first waterworks in Hong Kong to adopt an advanced reverse osmosis desalination technology".

The plant, which recently won an award at the ICI Sustainable Construction Awards 2023, and will cover approximately 5% of Hong Kong's total freshwater demand (850,000 people), with a production capacity of 135,000 cubic meters per day when it will be fully operational. The desalination plant was awarded to ACCIONA with its partners Jardine Engineering Corporation Limited and China State Construction Engineering Limited, for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the first phase. The contractual operation period is ten years with a possible extension of five years.

Adopting the reverse osmosis desalination technology, pre-treated seawater will pass through membrane which allows fresh water to pass through but retains salts and impurities. Desalinated seawater will then undergo post-treatment procedures to produce drinking water fully meeting Hong Kong Drinking Water Standards on par with the quality of water supplied by other water treatment works in Hong Kong. There will be real-time monitoring of the whole treatment process.

The adjacent site is also earmarked for future expansion, with a water production capacity that will meet around 10 per cent of the overall fresh water demand in Hong Kong.