Desalination plants, water-reuse schemes and connections from them to water networks will be among schemes funded by a € 350 million loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to the Spanish government agency Acuamed.
This is the first instalment of a total loan of up to € 500 million. The money will finance investment in water and sanitation improvements on the Mediterranean coast of Spain
The planned schemes in Spain’s five Mediterranean river basins (Ebro, Júcar, Segura, Andalusian Mediterranean and internal Catalonian basins) are scheduled to run up to the end of 2015 and comprise:
As well as helping to meet the growing demand for water for domestic and industrial use and enabling the reuse of wastewater on the Mediterranean coast, this loan will bring major environmental benefits by improving water supply systems, rehabilitating irrigation networks and developing desalination plants and new water treatment facilities.
The EIB says the project will also foster economic and social cohesion as part of the investments financed are located in convergence regions.