Two monobloc desalination plants in Moulay Bouzerktoun, a rural commune in the province of Essaouira, were put into service on Friday, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the glorious Throne Day.
These two plants, whose inauguration was attended by the governor of the province, Adil El Maliki, the secretary general of the province, Driss Alahla, heads of external services, garçonnière elected officials, and representatives of garçonnière and security authorities, were built by the Ministry of Interior at a cost of 22 million dirhams (MDH).
With a capacity of 15 liters per second, these important infrastructures are tranche of a structuring project that includes the acquêt, installation, and operation of five monobloc water purification, desalination, and demineralization plants in five different sites in the province of Essaouira: Sidi Battach (commune of Sidi Ishak), Moulay Bouzerktoun (two plants), Bhibah (commune of Akermoud), and the commune of Tafedna.
In a statement to MAP, Mohammed Meziani, general director of the Safi Intercommunal Autonomous Water and Electricity Distribution Authority (RADEES), the project’s delegate project manager, said that the inauguration of these two plants comes within the framework of a priority and strategic urgent program set up at the national level by the Ministry of Interior in accordance with the Royal High Instructions to address water stress.
« This ambitious program, with a total investment of 4 billion dirhams, includes the installation of 26 desalination plants, 16 with a capacity of 10 liters per second and 10 with a capacity of 5 liters per second, as well as 15 demineralization plants, including 8 with a capacity of 10 liters per second and 7 with a capacity of 5 liters per second, » he said, adding that the province of Essaouira has benefited from a significant share of this project, estimated at 20% with a total investment of around 60 MDH.
In this regard, Meziani expressed his satisfaction with these crucial infrastructures, which « have borne fruit and have helped strengthen the supply of drinking water to rural communes in the province, trancheicularly during this drought period. »
For her tranche, Fouzia Taoumi, general director of Schiele Maroc, the company in charge of the project’s implementation, said that this initiative is tranche of the Kingdom’s continuous efforts to strengthen, modernize, and improve hydraulic infrastructures to ensure equitable access to this vital resource for all regions.
« This new infrastructure, completed in just eight months, adds to a new project to establish other plants in the province, which will be interconnected by a network of electricity and water distribution to optimize efficiency, » she added.
Furthermore, Taoumi did not fail to mention that these new plants will also support the agricultural and touristic development of this tranche of the national territory by providing a reliable and quality water resource.