[나미비아] Rossing Uranium, 담수화 프로젝트 고려

나미비아의 우라늄 광산회사인 Rossing Uranium이 경제적으로 중요한 에롱고 주의 물 부족 문제를 해결하기 위해 새로운 담수화 플랜트의 경제적이며 실행가능한 운영, 건설, 설계에 대해 조사하고 있다고 밝혔다.

Rossing Uranium사는 "Rossing Uranium은 현재 물 이용 비용이 너무 비싼 상황에 처해 있으며 광산운영 비용을 절감하고 상업적인 지속가능성을 강화하기 위해 담수화된 해수를 대처할 수 있는 자원을 조사하고 있다."고 발표했다.

Namibian uranium mining firm Rossing Uranium is investigating the economic viability of designing, constructing and operating a new desalination plant to supply its operation in the economically important Erongo Region where water is scarce.

"Rossing Uranium wishes to investigate an alternate source for desalinated seawater in an effort to reduce the cost of its mining operations and enhance its commercial sustainability", the company said in a statement. The mining firm said its water costs were currently excessive.

Rossing is looking to build the plant at a site north of Swakopmund close to a proposed desalination facility planned by the state owned water firm NamWater. According to Rossing its plan to build its own desalination plant emerged because the outcome, timelines and commercial aspects of the NamWater project were uncertain. And it said it had failed to agree long-term water supplies at economically feasible terms with an Areva desalination plant which has supplied Rossing on an interim basis since November 2013.

Prior to going ahead with the new plant Rossing must submit an application to the Ministry of Environmental and Tourism and and go through a social, environmental impact assessment (SEIA). It has appointed independent environmental consulting firms, Rossing Uranium has appointed SLR Environmental Consulting (Namibia) and Aurecon Namibia, to manage the SEIA process.

[출처 = Desalination & Water Reuse / 2014년 7월 28일]