Panama details progress of David sewerage project

Construction works on sewerage and wastewater treatment systems for David, capital of Panama's Chiriquí province and the country's third largest city, are progressing, with some 12,000m of pipelines already having been laid, national water utility Idaan said in a release.

To date, some 215m of those pipelines have been laid as part of the David river collector, the point where secondary sewage lines will join the main lines to transport wastewater to the treatment facility, which will have a 51,840m3/day treatment capacity and is also being built as part of the project.

Regarding the treatment plant, excavation work is currently being carried out on the 4-hectare lot where the facility will be located.

With work still underway, pipelines have also been installed in the areas of Vedado Sur, Vedado Central, La Vergüenza and San Cristóbal Sur.

The remaining pipes, in addition to inspection cameras and household connections, have already been installed in the neighboring locality of San Cristóbal, which is the project's second largest beneficiary after David.

The project, which is the largest ever undertaken by Idaan, requires estimated investments of US$297mn.

Consorcio Agua de David, which is comprised by French water solutions firm Suez and Spanish engineering firm Pentec, was awarded the contract to build and operate the network for five years. Works on the project were launched in March of last year and are scheduled to take 24 months.

The initiative is part of the so-called PASAP, a comprehensive water and sanitation project to improve drinking water access and wastewater treatment throughout the country.

More than 100,000 residents of David are expected to benefit from the works.

Pictured: Pipes being laid as part of the project. CREDIT: Idaan.