Will Kazakhstan's desalination plan work out this time?

摘要

A project to build a 50,000m~3/d desalination plant for a future resort town by the Caspian Sea is the latest move in Kazakhstan's bid to reduce water stress in the country's south-west. Mangystau region - which covers roughly two-thirds of the country's Caspian coastline - has a desert climate, and remains partly reliant on a 1,000km cross-border pipeline from the river Volga for its water supply. State-owned gas company KazMu-naiGaz is teaming up with regional authorities to attract investors for a new desal plant to be built at Kendirli Bay, where a beach resort is set to emerge from the sands within the coming years. The 50,000m~3/d facility is also planned to supply the industrial port of Kuryk further to the north, as well as the inland mining town of Zhanaozen.