Sembcorp NEWater Plant, Singapore

What is it?

Singapore’s fifth and largest NEWater plant. The plant employs microfiltration, reverse osmosis and UV to polish treated effluent from the Changi water reclamation plant (CWRP) to produce 228,000m³/d of ‘NEWater’, which is supplied to industrial and commercial consumers. The plant is located on the rooftop of the CWRP.

Who is responsible?

Sembcorp Utilities developed the plant under a design-build-own-operate contract, signing a 25-year treated effluent offtake agreement with Singapore’s Public Utilities Board (PUB). Black & Veatch provided design engineering and construction support services. CH2M Hill led the conceptual and preliminary design phase, and acted as lead consultant on the implementation.

What makes it special?

• The plant is one of the largest membrane-based water recycling facilities in the world, and a lynchpin in PUB’s majestic NEWater scheme. The plant will meet 15% of Singapore’s current water demand.

• The ‘plant-on-plant’ design is an engineering marvel that minimised the land requirements of the entire plant complex, as well as the construction costs.

• The variance in feedwater quality from the CWRP is catered for by a clever mechanism which manages the flux in the RO system, allowing for greater efficiencies under normal operating conditions.