Denmark to invest in wastewater projects

Construction of 2nd-largest treatment plant in Punjab resumes

JARANWALA:

The Impact Fund Denmark (IFDK) has expressed interest in investing in wastewater treatment and solar energy projects for water and sanitation agencies in Punjab, citing potential for infrastructure development in the sector.

The commitment was conveyed during a meeting with Punjab Minister for Housing, Urban Development and Public Health Engineering Bilal Yasin and relevant officials. The Danish delegation included the IFDK investment head and project manager.

During the meeting, Punjab Water and Sanitation Agency (PWASA) Director General Tayyab Farid briefed the delegation on progress made on the Eastern Wastewater Treatment Plant (EWTP). He said the environmental protection department had issued the project's no-objection certificate (NOC), a Project Management Unit (PMU) had been established and 90 acres of state land had been transferred to the housing department and Faisalabad WASA.

He added that the consultant selection had been completed and a loan agreement signed last year between the federal government, DANIDA Sustainable Infrastructure Finance and Danske Bank Denmark.

Farid said the 33-million-gallons-per-day treatment plant would reduce pollution and improve the quality of irrigation water.

Officials said construction of the second-largest wastewater treatment facility in the province had resumed after a suspension caused by security concerns.

They said WASA had intensified monitoring of the project to ensure timely completion, while foreign engineers had returned to the site and reaffirmed their commitment in this regard.

Project Director Hafiz Owais Jamal described the plant as a state-of-the-art environmental initiative that would treat municipal and industrial wastewater.

Wastewater collected through Channel-4 on the eastern side of Faisalabad will be treated before being discharged into the Gugera Branch Canal for irrigation.