In May 2023, Namibia's Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, Calle Schlettwein, called at a planning workshop in Swakopmund for faster construction of a second desalination plant. Procurement and a public-private partnership were to be finalised that year. Cabinet allowed NamWater to seek loans for a plant serving the coast and central regions including Windhoek, with costs estimated above N$3.5 billion. Critics pointed to Orano Mining's Erongo plant, with 20 million m³ of annual capacity and room to expand.
The report shows a typical trade-off: a new state plant versus expanding an existing one, tied to the question of how desalinated water reaches the interior from the coast.
Source: The Namibian