Israeli desalination firm earns Global Water Award

IDE Tecnologies wins award for its Sorek facilty from Global Water Intelligence at the Global Water Summit.

By SHARON UDASIN
Desalination plant in Hadera 311 (R) (photo credit: REUTERS / Nir Elias)
Desalination plant in Hadera 311 (R)
(photo credit: REUTERS / Nir Elias)
Israeli desalination leader IDE Technologies announced on Tuesday that earlier this month it had received a Global Water Award for the best desalination facility of the year, in honor of its Sorek facility.
IDE Technologies finished building the Sorek plant, which has a capacity of 624,000 cu.m. per day, with partner Hutchison Water International Holdings Pte. Ltd. last year.
The plant, which is located 15 km. south of Tel Aviv and features the world’s largest and most advanced seawater reverse osmosis process, received the award from Global Water Intelligence at the Global Water Summit in Paris, France, in early April.
IDE also received an honorable mention in the category of desalination company of the year – for which the firm earned first place in 2011.
In addition to completing the Sorek project, IDE also finished work on China’s largest desalination plant at the Tianjin SDIC power station and on another at Cyprus’s Vasilikos power plant last year, the company said.
IDE has begun construction on the Carlsbad desalination plant for San Diego County, which will have a capacity of 204,412 cu.m. per day, the firm added.
The company’s seawater reverse osmosis process will also be expanding to India’s largest desalination plant, according to IDE.
The new Sorek plant in Israel provides potable water for more than 1.5 million people, equivalent to approximately 20 percent of Israel’s municipal water demand.
Global Water Intelligence praised the firm for its smart design of vertical, 41 cm. membranes that enable fast installation, increased accessibility and environmental sensitivity despite the “gargantuan size” of desalination plants.