Tshwane set to partner with DBSA in R64.5m Rooiwal plant upgrade

The City of Tshwane’s Rooiwal Wastewater Treatment Works. File Oupa Mokoena / Independent Newspapers

The City of Tshwane’s Rooiwal Wastewater Treatment Works. File Oupa Mokoena / Independent Newspapers

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The City of Tshwane is set to secure a R64.5 million partnership with the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) to revitalise the Rooiwal wastewater treatment plant, addressing critical infrastructure challenges and improving water quality in Hammanskraal.

This collaboration aims to repair and maintain the plant, ultimately boosting the city's economy.

Both parties will enter into a grant agreement that will enable the implementation of necessary maintenance at the Rooiwal plant, including enhancements to chemical dosing.

The DBSA grant amounts to R64.5m, with R25m directly funded by DBSA and the remaining amount sourced from other funders.

This is crucial, as the effluent from the Rooiwal plant is used as raw water for drinking water production at the Temba water treatment plant.

The details about the partnership are contained in a recently tabled council report that noted the City has identified the DBSA as one such strategic partner.

The City, the report said, seeks to enter into a long-term relationship with DBSA to resolve some of the service delivery and infrastructure-related challenges to improve the City’s economy.

The report said some of the challenges faced by the Rooiwal included the fact that the plant is “hydraulically and organically” overloaded, huge maintenance backlog due to lack of funding and a need for expansion to ensure effluent compliance.

According to the water and sanitation department the grant agreement with the DBSA will assist to implement the required maintenance at the Rooiwal plant, including improving the chemical dosing.

The report further stated that the effluent discharged from the Rooiwal plant serves as raw water for the production of drinking water at the Temba water treatment plant.

“This places an obligation on Rooiwal to produce the highest effluent quality possible. To achieve this, expansion of the plant as well as regular repairs and maintenance is required. A range of chemicals is also added as part of the treatment process,” said the report.

This development is part of broader efforts to resolve water pollution issues in Hammanskraal, where a cholera outbreak occurred last year, resulting in the death of more than 20 people.

The Department of Water and Sanitation and the City are working together to repair and upgrade the Rooiwal plant with estimated costs reaching R4 billion.

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