Water production at the Adelaide Desalination Plant in Lonsdale is being ramped up to ensure metropolitan Adelaide has a secure water supply amid the sustained dry conditions.
Last year was Adelaide’s driest year since 2006, with only 347mm of rain recorded over the 12 months, nearly 200mm below average.
The dry conditions have resulted in the lowest amount of water inflows to Adelaide’s reservoirs for around 40 years, with combined reservoir levels at 44 per cent – the lowest level for more than 20 years.
The Adelaide Desalination Plant will temporarily produce more water than its typical volume until mid-2025.
The plant is expected to produce up to 300 million litres of water per day during the next month. For context, just 520 million litres were produced for the entire month in January 2024.
The increase will ensure SA Water customers in metropolitan Adelaide continue to have a consistent water supply throughout summer without the need for water restrictions.
Adelaide is supplied by 10 reservoirs, water from the River Murray, and the Adelaide Desalination Plant – with this diversity and flexibility of sources protecting the city’s water security.
Drinking water produced by the Adelaide Desalination Plant is pumped along an 11-kilometre pipeline to storage tanks at Happy Valley, where it’s blended with treated water from the reservoir.
The interconnection of SA Water’s network of pipelines and pump stations provides the ability to supply drinking water produced at the Adelaide Desalination Plant to homes and businesses from Aldinga in the south, right up to Elizabeth in the north.
In addition to producing more water at the Adelaide Desalination Plant, SA Water is also optimising its use of water from the River Murray, which is transported through major pipelines such as the Mannum to Adelaide Pipeline to top up its reservoirs.
Despite the dry local conditions, a high level of water availability exists across the Murray-Darling Basin – which is currently at 66 per cent overall – helping underpin the State’s water security.
Most of SA’s regional areas continue to have sufficient supply through either the River Murray, groundwater or desalination.
A Water Security Response Plan has been established for the Eyre Peninsula and steps out how SA Water is protecting the region’s water security and encouraging the community to save water.
The Adelaide Desalination Plant has supplied more than 212 billion litres of drinking water to homes and businesses across Adelaide since it was first switched on in 2011.
SA Water’s industry-leading operating pattern of the plant – which typically produces 5.3 billion litres of water in a minimum production mode for nine months of the year – has enabled it to swiftly increase production to further support the city’s water needs.
In full operation, the plant has the capacity to produce 100 billion litres of water per year.
As put by Nick Champion
It has been an exceptionally dry 12 months, but Adelaide’s water supply will remain consistent and secure, with sufficient supply to meet the needs of the community.
Desalination plants are generational future-proofing investments that provide important water security at the times we need it most.
In this dry time we are reaping the benefits of long term strategic thinking of the former Rann Government to appropriately invest in critical infrastructure.
Without this previous investment in a desal facility, Adelaide would be facing the prospect of water restrictions.
