Upgrades will begin in July to the Karratha wastewater treatment plant No. 1 and the South Hedland treatment plant to bring capacity to 10 million litres per day by June 2014.

“We are delighted to have been selected as the preferred partner with Water Corporation to supply end-to-end project services for the delivery of these wastewater treatment plants,” Tenix executive general manager Chris Lazidis said.

Access and management of water has become a key issue for major iron ore expansion plans in the Pilbara and the competition for water led the Western Australian government to review its water allocation policy in key areas where mining growth is occurring.

Total water demand in WA is expected to increase by 4% per year and with growth in the minerals and energy sector, water use is likely to reach 422 gigalitres per year by 2015.

Some analysts have predicted the Pilbara region’s population will grow from approximately 15,000 to more than 30,000 people in 2015.

Increasing water supply and improving waste water treatment plants will also be key to supporting residential developments in Port Hedland and Karratha under the Pilbara Cities Initiative, which plans to increase both cities’ populations to 50,000 by 2035.

The PCI has been involved with the relocation of the Port Hedland wastewater treatment plant, which will allow more land to be released and allow the plant to be increased in size.

Tenix has partnered with the Water Corporation for over a decade and is currently delivering existing water and wastewater services with the Water Corporation in the Margaret River and Busselton regions based in southwest of WA.

In June last year, Tenix won its first major contract in Western Australia, a $174 million deal to provide Rio Tinto’s Argyle underground mine with crushers, conveyors and dewatering facilities.

Tenix has designed and constructed a number of water treatment and recycling plants and operates and maintains 15 plants across Australia.