Corpus Christi approves $175M containerized brackish desalination plant amid drought

The Corpus Christi City Council has approved a $175 million contract with FCC Aqualia USA Corp. for the design, procurement, assembly, commissioning and operation of a containerized brackish water desalination plant at the O.N. Stevens Water Treatment Plant.

The project includes $43.5 million for the containerized brackish water treatment system, up to $11.5 million for ancillary improvements at the existing treatment plant, and up to $120 million for emergency construction of pipelines, storage tanks, an effluent discharge facility and pump station infrastructure from the City’s Western Well Field.

City officials cited severe drought conditions as the driving force behind the expedited project. Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon Reservoir have reached historically low levels, prompting the need for supplemental supply to stabilize the region’s water system.

“This is an innovative approach to increasing our water supply in an expedited manner,” said Nicholas Winkelmann, Chief Operating Officer of Corpus Christi Water, in a press release. “This project supports our strategy to diversify and strengthen the regional water supply.”

The new desalination plant will treat brackish groundwater from the City’s western well field and deliver finished water in phases. Production is expected to reach 3.91 million gallons per day (MGD) by the eleventh month of operation and scale to a full capacity of 21.3 MGD by the second year.

According to the City, the groundwater conveyance infrastructure will transport water directly to the O.N. Stevens plant, reducing flows to the Nueces River and helping limit evaporation losses from surface water sources.

For water utilities facing prolonged drought and reservoir declines, the project reflects a growing reliance on brackish groundwater desalination and modular treatment approaches to add supply quickly while diversifying long-term water portfolios.