The Finance Ministry’s Tenders Committee approved onThursday a proposal from Mekorot National Water Company to establish adesalination plant in Ashdod, the ministry announced in a statement thatafternoon.
The plant, which will begin providing water in 2013 at acost of NIS 2.4 per cubic meter, will supply a total of 100 million cubicmeters per year and will be completed at the same time as the new desalinationfacility in Soreq, which will supply 150 million cubic meters per year,according to the statement. After these two plants open, a total of NIS 540million cubic meters of desalinated water will be available in Israel annually,accounting for 40 percent of the country’s freshwater supply, the ministrysaid.