USA – The city of Corpus Christi, Texas, is looking to build desalination plants to address the city’s growing demand for water. In 2017 ExxonMobil announced plans to build one of the largest chemical plants north of Corpus Christi. In the first six years of operation the project is projected to inject $50 million into the city’s economy.  This economic growth is expected to meet a growing demand for industrial water.  Several public and private entities are considering plans to build seawater desalination plants to meet these needs.^[1]

El Paso, Texas is on course to become the first major city in the U.S. to utilize direct potable reuse of municipal wastewater. El Paso’s planned closed loop facility will send treated wastewater for additional filtration before being transferred to drinking water pipelines. El Paso Water anticipates that by 2030 treated wastewater will comprise 10% of its water supply, of which 6% will come from advanced purification. While several other utilities across the country treat sewage water and pump it back into the aquifer to eventually drink, it can take years for the water to become reusable. ^[2]

^{Mactan Island, Philippines Credit: Cebufest}

PHILIPPINES – The Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) announced it will accept proposals from companies for a desalination project to supply the island of Mactan. MCWD revealed that one company has already submitted a proposal. Mactan’s water needs were 90,000 m³/d in 2017, and continue to grow in 2018. MCWD has stated that it aims to make Mactan Island’s water supply independent from mainland Cebu.^[3]

OMAN – The Oman Humanitarian Desalination Challenge Prize is officially open to applications. Applicants from around the world can compete for the $700,000 prize which will be awarded to the team or person that delivers a hand-held, standalone, low-cost, desalination device appropriate for short-term use and rapid deployment in the event of a humanitarian crisis. The official list of qualified entries will be announced in March 2019, after which competitors will be given five months to build their device and submit a written narrative and video of their device in operation.^[4]

PAKISTAN – The Senate Standing Committee on Planning, Development and Reforms for the provincial government of Balochistan has expressed frustration over the status of the desalination plant at Karwat in Gwadar. The committee observed that after spending more than $14 million from the national exchequer, the 9,092 m³/d plant was still non-functional. The chairman of the committee has requested the Ministry of Planning, Development and Reforms to conduct an inquiry and submit a detailed report about what has transpired at the facility.^[5]