A subsidiary of Israeli desalination giant, IDE Technologies is to design a new $922 million desalination plant in California that will be the biggest desalination project in the United States.

The new 204,412 cubic meter seawater desalination plan, called the Carlsbad Desalination Project, is to be built in San Diego. It will be designed by IDE subsidiary, IDE Americas, and administered by Poseidon Resources, a subsidiary of Poseidon Water. It will be carried out in partnership with the San Diego County Water Authority.

San Diego currently suffers a water shortage and has committed itself to supplying seven percent of the region’s water through desalination by 2020.

Construction of the new plant will begin this year, and it is likely to be operational by 2016, according to IDE Technologies, which will receive $150m for the design contract, and a further $500m for operating and maintaining the plant under a 30-year contract.

IDE Technologies, which is based in Kadima near Netanya, has built and operates some of the world’s largest desalination plants, including the Ashkelon and Hadera desalination plants in Israel, which are currently the largest in the world. It is also responsible for the new Soreq desalination plant in Israel, which is scheduled to begin operating this year.

The company has worked in 400 plants in 40 countries, and is now building China’s largest and ‘greenest’ desalination plant in Tianjin
“The Carlsbad Desalination Project is a significant milestone for us, California and the US at large, as we believe it will set the stage for the future of desalination in America,” said Avshalom Felber, CEO of IDE Technologies.

“For decades, we’ve successfully completed similar projects in countries all over the world, and we’re excited to be a part of what will be the largest desalination plant in the US.”