IDE Technologies, a leader in desalination and water treatment, has been awarded a contract to construct a desalination plant by Aguas Pacífico SpA.

The EPC contract for the Aconcagua desalination plant includes the engineering, supply, construction, start-up and commissioning of a seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant with a nominal production capacity of 86,400 cu.m/d located in the bay of Quintero in the Valparaíso Region of Chile.

The plant will be the first drought-proof source of fresh water in the Aconcagua basin to serve municipal, agricultural, industrial and mining clients in the region, IDE says.

Enrique Cruzat, CEO of Aguas Pacífico, said: “IDE presented the best offer both technically and economically to Aguas Pacífico, an investment vehicle of Patria Investments Infrastructure Fund, after the successful conclusion of a highly competitive international tender process for the Aconcagua Project’s EPC contract. Project Aconcagua is the first permanent, secure and sustainable multi-client non-continental fresh water source in Chile’s Valparaíso Region.”

IDE’s experience encompasses hundreds of desalination plants worldwide, with more than 20 successfully operating in Chile since 1990, including the Quebrada Blanca Phase 2 desalination project scheduled to be completed next year.

IDE’s design of the Aconcagua desalination plant will be in accordance with the stringent environmental requirements and regulations in Chile, the company added.

Miki Tramer, VP, Sales and Marketing for IDE, said: “The Aconcagua award is a statement to our decades of experience, and mission to deliver superior results to our clients in the design and construction of desalination facilities in Chile. We look forward to partnering with Aguas Pacífico SpA in other regions of the country that will benefit from this type of multi-client desalination plant.”