Singapore's fifth desalination plant officially opened on Apr. 17 on Jurong Island.

Its opening was officiated by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat and Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu, according to a press release by PUB.

The plant will be operated by a consortium formed by Tuas Power and ST Engineering for a 25-year-period.

More energy efficient than other desalination plants

The Jurong Island Desalination Plant (JIDP) spans around 3.7ha, or five football fields, and has a daily capacity of up to 137,000m³.

This is the equivalent of 55 Olympic-sized swimming pools of water, or up to seven per cent of Singapore’s daily water demand, reported CNA.

It is co-located with an existing power plant, Tuas Power’s Tembusu Multi-Utilities Complex.

This enables it to be about five per cent more energy-efficient than conventional desalination plants, saving energy that is enough to power nearly 1,000 HDB households.

The co-location also ensures that the two plants can "derive synergies in resources", such as sharing of seawater intake and outfall structures, as well as energy from in-plant generation facilities.

JIDP incorporates the latest proven water treatment equipment and membrane technologies such as dissolved air flotation, ultra-filtration, and reverse osmosis.​

Additionally, the plant is highly automated — a three-person team can run the entire plant's operations from its control room.

Desalination a stable source of potable water

Desalination is the most expensive method of producing water due to the amount of energy it consumes.

However, it is still an essential source of potable water for Singapore, Chief Executive of PUB Ng Joo Hee said, as it is unaffected by changes in weather conditions.

"JIDP further diversifies our water production portfolio and its coming into operation enhances Singapore’s water security."

Desalinated water is one of Singapore’s Four National Taps, and a weather-resilient source that contributes to the nation’s long-term water supply sustainability.

The other four desalination plants in Singapore are the Singspring, Tuas South, Tuas and Marina East plants.​​

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Top photo from PUB