Cyprus' Water Development Department (WDD) will initiate a competitive tender for a desalination plant in Kouklia

The country’s Cabinet approved construction of the new facility in Kouklia on the site of a temporary plant built in 2010, which is currently being dismantled.

The proposed new plant will be secured on a build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) basis, and will have a capacity of 15,000 m3/d.

The decision met with protests by farmers who fear that they will face reduced water supply in the intervening years before the new plant is completed.

Cyprus wants to reduce its reliance on rain-dependent water sources in readiness for possible future drought. The temporary plant was constructed following an extended drought during 2008, but has rarely been used.