Business water supply increased by first desalination plant

03/06/2010

Thames Water has opened the first desalination plant in the UK, which should increase the supply of business water.

Yesterday (June 2nd), at the opening of the plant, the water supplier said it would provide a back-up supply for the "seriously water-stressed" capital, reports Business Green.

The £270 million Thames Gateway Water Treatment Works is expected to produce around 150 million litres of water per day when it is running.

This could greatly increase the supply of business water to London. It has the potential to supply more than one million customers.

A spokesperson for Thames Water told the news provider that the plant was unlikely to be used this year and would only be used if a drought occurred.

"We have already had the average rainfall this year to prevent drought, but obviously it’s difficult to predict the weather."

Every day, Thames Water supplies around 8.5 million business water and household customers with about 2,600 million litres of water.

Posted by Nicola Richards