The Victorian Desalination Plant[2] (also referred to as the Victorian Desalination Project or Wonthaggi desalination plant) is a water desalination plant in Dalyston, on the Bass Coast in southern Victoria, Australia. The project was announced by Premier Steve Bracks in June 2007,[3] at the height of the millennium drought when Melbourne's water storage levels dropped to 28.4%, a drop of more than 20% from the previous year. Increased winter-spring rains after mid-2007 took water storage levels above 40%,[4] but it was not until 2011 that storages returned to pre-2006 levels.
The plant was completed in December 2012, and was the largest addition to Melbourne's water system since the Thomson River Dam was completed in 1983. However, at the time, Melbourne's reservoirs were at 81% capacity, and the plant was immediately put into standby mode.[5] The first water released for public use was in March 2017 via Cardinia Reservoir.
As a rainfall-independent source of water the desalination plant complements Victoria's existing drainage basins, being a useful resource in times of drought. It is a controversial part of Victoria's water system, with ongoing costs of $608 million a year,[6] equivalent to .16% of Melbourne's FY2019 GDP,[7] even if no water is ordered. Construction commenced in mid-2009.[8] While the project will supply water for Melbourne, it is being managed by the Department of Sustainability & Environment (DSE) as a public-private partnership (PPP). DSE awarded the tender for design, build and operation to another company that will in turn supply the water to Melbourne Water, that makes payments to the plant owners and operators, Aquasure (Ventia/Suez). Melbourne Water pays the owner of the plant, even if no water is ordered, $608 million a year.[6] That is $1.8 million per day, for 27 years.[5] The total payment is expected to be between $18 and $19 billion.[5] On 1 April each year, the Minister for Water places an order for the following financial year, up to 150 gigalitres a year, at an additional cost to Melbourne Water and consumers.[5]
^"Fact Sheet Project Costs" (PDF). Government of Victoria. March 2015.
^"The Victorian Desalination Project". Retrieved 28 October 2013.
^"Bracks announces $5 billion water plan". The Age. 20 June 2007.
^"Melbourne Water water storage graph 1997–2010". Archived from the original on 7 September 2010. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
^ abcd"Victorians pay dearly, but not a drop to drink". ABC News. 18 December 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
^ ab"Subscribe to the Herald Sun". Herald Sun. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
^"Melbourne closes on Sydney as nation's economic powerhouse". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
^Our Water, Our Future – Desalination Plant Archived 8 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine
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