Adelaide desalination plant will return to hibernation after providing water for drought-stricken farmers
South Australia’s $2.2bn desalination plant is going back into hibernation after being briefly fired up to help drought-stricken farmers - as new report finds it’s too expensive to use full time to take pressure off the River Murray.
SA News
Don't miss out on the headlines from SA News. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- November: Desal plant will be fired up to aid drought-hit Murray
- December: SA’s desal water for farmers sells out in 24 hours
- June: Heavy rain means desal plan could be scrapped
South Australia’s $2.2bn desalination plant is going back into hibernation after being briefly fired up to support drought-stricken farmers.
A $98m deal between the federal and state governments to supply 100 gigalitres of water to farmers to grow fodder is now on hold, with a decision not expected until late this year. A study has also found it would cost taxpayers up to $645m a year to use the desal plant to supply Adelaide’s water needs and take pressure off the River Murray.
SA Water Minister David Speirs said the independent report had confirmed the cost of running the plant was “too prohibitive”.
Taxpayers would have to pay $486m a year for the desal plant to deliver 30GL of water annually for 30 years, modelling by engineering and advisory company Aurecon found.
Under a second scenario, it would cost the Federal Government $645m a year to run the plant “in perpetuity” to deliver 30GL a year.
The virtually unused desal plant was fired up in December after the State and Federal governments struck a deal to free up 100GL of river water for drought-stricken farmers.
An initial 40GL was delivered under round one of the scheme, with 800 parcels of water selling out within 24 hours of going on the market.
But a second phase to deliver 60GL for farmers is now on hold because of significant rainfall across the Murray-Darling Basin, prompting questions over whether the costly desal water is needed.
Federal Water Minister Keith Pitt said the decision on whether to roll out the remaining water would be made later this year.
The Advertiser reported in October it cost $88,000 a day to keep the plant operational.
A stakeholder review, to be released on Friday, found the water-for-fodder scheme had widespread support, with 84 per cent of farmers who received water saying they would apply again if they had the opportunity.
“By providing 50 megalitre parcels of water at the significantly discounted price of $100 a megalitre, we helped those farm businesses during a difficult period of water shortages,” Mr Pitt said. He said he would “work and consult closely with South Australia on the future of the program”.
Mr Speirs said the scheme had been a “historic agreement” to support drought-affected farmers “in a great time of need”.
He said the governments always made it clear there would be a review of the scheme “to protect South Australia’s water security”.
The feasibility study recommends authorities consider using the plant as a “gap-bridging” project to help provide 450GL of water for the environment required by the Murray-Darling Basin Plan by 2024.
It also recommends considering whether the plant could be used to “support the water market in dry years through water trading”.
The report took into account the requirement that South Australians would not pay more in their water bills for running the plant.