Windhoek/Ujams Industrial Water Reclamation Plant, Case Study Namibia

The Ujams Water Reclamation Plant (WRP) treats industrial used water that is mainly discharged by an abattoir, a brewery, and a tannery located in the city of Windhoek’s northern industrial area. The purpose of the plant is to clean and reclaim industrial effluents for further reuse for the augmentation of the Klein-Windhoek River and other applications such as dust control during road construction. Potential future reuse applications include urban irrigation and reutilization in industry. The project is a public-private partnership between the city of Windhoek and Ujams Wastewater Treatment Company Ltd. (UWTC) and subject to a BOOT business model (design, build, own, operate, transfer) is being operated for a period of 21 years up to 2035. In order to handle the complex range of contaminants in the feed water, WABAG prepared an innovative treatment concept using the in-company-developed MICROPUR® fine sieving pretreatment process in combination with a membrane bioreactor (MBR), UV disinfection, sludge treatment, and exhaust air treatment. The plant, which has a capacity of 5175 m3/d, was officially inaugurated in October 2014 by the mayor of Windhoek and has been in full operation ever since. The key facts relating to the Ujams water reclamation facility are that (i) the plant represents Namibia’s first industrial water recycling and wastewater membrane bioreactor, (ii) the plant is being operated using a public-private partnership business model (BOOT), (iii) the plant is able to purify effluents from differing production facilities and manage extreme variations in terms of inflow loads and used water characteristics, and (iv) the plant is characterized by a smart, compact, and flexible process design and plant layout. In 2015, Ujams Water Reclamation Plant received the Global Water Intelligence (GWI) Distinction Award in the “Industrial Water Project of the Year” category.