Acciona Agua to build waste water treatment plant in Colombia

Acciona Agua, as part of a consortium, has secured a $347m contract from the public utilities firm Aguas Nacionales EPM de Medellin to build the new Bello wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Medellin, Colombia.

Acciona Agua is a member of the winning consortium, Aguas de Aburra HHA, which also includes South Korea’s Hyundai Engineering and Construction Company and Hyundai Engineering Company.

Under the terms of the contract, the company will design, build, operate and maintain the new Bello WWTP.

The company intends to construct the necessary infrastructure in three years and will take one year to operate and maintain the facility.

The plant will have a design flow of 5m3/second and will initially service about three million inhabitants.

Wastewater will reach the plant through the Bello Interceptor, before being pumped into the Medellin River.

The plant will treat 120 tonnes of wastewater using biological, physical and chemical processes, and will process about 75% of residential wastewater, covering 95% of the water discharged into the Medellin River.

The plant will reduce the river’s organic load that will help to meet the water-quality target set by the Aburra Valley Metropolitan Area which aims to bring down dissolved oxygen levels to an average 5mg/litre.

Image: The WWTP will have a design flow of 5m3/second and will treat wastewater from the municipalities of Medellin and Bello. Photo: Acciona.