Basra: Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani announced today, Thursday, the commencement of the executive works for the strategic seawater desalination project near the Grand Faw Port, during his visit to Basra Province. He affirmed that the project represents a fundamental and sustainable solution to the province's ongoing water scarcity crisis.
According to National Iraqi News Agency, Al-Sudani stated that the project, with a production capacity of one million cubic meters per day, is the largest and most advanced of its kind in the region. It comes in response to the decreasing water levels in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and the decline in rainfall. He emphasized that the government has made this project a top priority in its public service agenda.
He noted that the project had faced delays due to its transfer between various ministries and previous governments. However, the necessary requirements for its success have now been completed, and the project has officially been transferred from the Ministry of Construction and Housing to the Basra provincial government, allowing actual implementation to begin.
Al-Sudani highlighted that the project will serve over four million people in Basra. It includes three parallel desalination lines, each with a capacity of 335,000 cubic meters per day, in addition to 12 local water storage tanks with a total capacity of one million cubic meters. It also involves nine distribution stations connected through a 240-kilometer pipeline network.
The project further includes the construction of a 300-megawatt power plant to ensure consistent operation and is expected to create approximately 3,500 job opportunities for the people of Basra.
The Prime Minister confirmed that small-scale desalination units will be established during the project's implementation period to provide residents with potable water. He stressed the federal government's continued commitment to supporting the province with the necessary resources and capabilities to enhance services and achieve living stability.