Australia’s GHD will work with US-based Butier Engineering on the US$ 300 million Carlsbad seawater desalination project in the USA. GHD announced on 16 March 2009 that the company will be providing oversight and independent assessment of the performance of the engineering procurement construction contractor and specialist knowledge and technical skills in sustainable water management practices.
The project will be managed from GHD’s office in Irvine, California. GHD has recently undertaken four strategic mergers in the US to build its core water and wastewater services in the American market. The company now has 18 offices across the US.
Located about 50 km north of San Diego, California, the Carlsbad desalination plant will provide about 190,000 m³/d of high quality drinking water, enough for 300,000 people. Construction on the facility, which is being developed by Poseidon Resources, will begin in 2009 and the plant is expected to be operational in 2011