Moorreesburg wastewater treatment in South Africa set for upgrade

The Moorreesburg wastewater treatment in South Africa is set to be upgraded. Anton Bredell, the Environmental Affairs and Development Planning Minister of the Western Cape local government, announced the renovation.

Moorreesburg wastewater treatment project is one of the largest capital projects in the history of Moorreesburg. At a cost of US $9M, the project will replace the old one, built in 1975 and nearing the end of its useful life.

The new facility will be able to produce 1.5 million litres of water each day and will employ a technique known as a denitrifying activated sludge system, which will incorporate a mechanical dehydration device. This new system will be launched and deployed globally soon, according to the team’s estimates.

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Wastewater treatment works

The project is set to be completed by January 2023. South Africa has experienced a shortage in base load electricity supply in recent years, prompting Eskom to demand significant increases to the bulk price of electricity in order to finance new capital expansion projects. Wastewater treatment is typically one of the most energy-intensive activities mandated to local municipalities. As the electricity price in South Africa increases, some local authorities have begun to explore ways to reduce energy costs through enhancements to treatment infrastructure.

The recent trend at wastewater treatment works (WWTWs) in industrialised nations has been to reduce energy costs by implementing technologically complex energy-efficiency or energy recovery solutions that achieve significant reduction in net energy use, but which are associated with high upfront capital investments and onerous operating and maintenance requirements.

The minister also emphasized the need for local authorities to plan and strengthen collaboration with partners. This includes the national and provincial governments and will help ensure a better life for all region’s residents.