Chile's MOP will be able to launch desal concessions under new bill

A bill that is intended to create a new water agency within Chile’s public works ministry (MOP) will also grant the government office the power to carry out desalination projects.

Under the current law, MOP cannot build desalination plants, but the bill to create the new water resources secretariat would allow it to carry out studies, operate, build and maintain such facilities, either using public funds or jointly with the private sector, public works minister Alfredo Moreno told the senate public works committee.

These projects would be handled by the new water infrastructure office DIH, which would replace current waterworks agency DOH, the bill states.

The DIH would also be responsible for carrying out studies for desalination plants and other infrastructure works such as reservoirs, potable water plants, flood defense works and rainwater drainage systems.

Moreno also said that the bill allows DIH to carry out these projects with private sector participation, which would allow the MOP to develop desalination concessions.

The minister noted that the country’s current desalination capacity is 6m3/s, adding that the projects currently under construction or under assessment would increase that figure to 20m3/s if all are completed as planned.

One of these is the US$250mn desal plant being built in Atacama region (pictured) by state-owned sanitation services firm Econssa, which Moreno said will be finished “in a matter of days or weeks.” 

However, he also pointed out that this mechanism isn’t a “silver bullet” for Chile’s water problems. 

Other aspects of the new bill include the creation of an agency for rural water systems, an expert panel to advise the new agency’s sub-departments and a ministerial water resources committee led by the MOP that will be responsible for drafting a 10-year water plan.