The Minister of Hydraulics and Sanitation, Cheikh Tidiane Dieye, recently announced the cancellation of the contract for the seawater desalination plant on the Grande Côte, signed under former President Macky Sall, stressing that this installation would present high production costs and would only constitute a temporary solution. In an interview on 2Stv, Mr Dieye confirmed that although the government did not support this project, he had encouraged ACWA Power to explore other investment prospects in Senegal. This decision to renegotiate the project sparked strong reactions from civil society.
However, upon his return from a trip which took him to Turkey and Saudi Arabia, President Bassirou Diomaye Faye surprised by declaring that the government will renegotiate with ACWA Power, with a view to relaunching this project. Invited to speak on the subject, Mignane Diouf, coordinator of the Senegalese Social Forum, specified that this decision is “a source of confusion”. “We learned through the press this statement from the Head of State which states that Senegal will renegotiate this desalination project on the Grande Côte with the Saudis.,” he said. For Mignane Diouf, this initiative raises questions: “At the time, when the minister declared that this contract was stopped, we applauded with both hands, because from the start, we were against this project because of the environmental risks and potential damage ” informs the latter.
The civil society actor expresses reservations about the lack of justification for this type of project, recalling that a desalination program is already underway at the Mamelles lighthouse. “There was therefore, in our opinion, no relevance in making a second,” he says. For him, Senegal has an abundant quantity of fresh water flowing into the Atlantic, particularly from Saint-Louis. According to him, it would be more judicious to exploit this resource rather than invest in a costly desalination process. “Wasn’t it better to see how to direct all this quantity where we need it instead of spending billions and billions of dollars on a desalination project? ?” asks the coordinator of the Senegalese Social Forum.
Critics also focus on the cost of a cubic meter of desalinated water, considered “very expensive” due to high production costs, as well as the environmental impact of saline residues which could harm the marine ecosystem. “Specialists tell us that when you pile them up at sea, it creates situations that force the fish to flee.,” he explains.
Finally, in a context of climate change, Mignane Diouf calls for reconsidering national priorities in terms of water management, pointing to recent floods in the northern and eastern regions of Senegal, which caused flooding in Matam , Ferlo, and Ranérou. “Taking all this into account, we should have had priority elsewhere than going towards a desalination project,” he concludes.
Mignane Diouf recalls that other renegotiations, notably that of the water management contract with Suez, should also be prioritized, due to rising bills and frequent water cuts. “Our position has not changed: environmentally, economically and financially, we think that we do not gain much with this project.,” he says, renewing his opposition to the Grande Côte desalination project.
As a reminder, former President Macky Sall and Acwa Power signed a contract for the construction and operation of a desalination plant with a nominal capacity of 400,000 m3/day. This contract signed 6 days before the end of Macky Sall’s mandate will commit the State of Senegal over a period of 30 years.
MOUSSA THIAM
