Swakop Uranium’s new desalination partnership with NamWater marks the latest chapter in a water saga that has shaped the Erongo uranium province for nearly thirty years.
NamWater confirmed this week that it has concluded a joint venture with Swakop Uranium, a subsidiary of China General Nuclear Power Group, to develop the Erongo Sunam Desalination Project near Swakopmund.
The plant, expected to cost about N$3 billion (around US$176 million), will be funded and operated by Swakop Uranium, which holds a 70% stake, while NamWater’s 30% share will place it in charge of regulatory oversight and of integrating the new supply into the national system.
The installation will become Namibia’s second major coastal desalination facility. The first, the Orano (Erongo) Desalination Plant at Wlotzkasbaken, was constructed between 2008 and 2010 to serve the Trekkopje uranium mine.
It now delivers as much as 20 million cubic metres of potable water annually to mines and towns including Walvis Bay, Swakopmund, Arandis and Henties Bay, and has pumped more than 123 million m³ into the regional network since 2010.
Even with that output, the coastal mining corridor has faced persistent water constraints. Mines and municipalities have long depended on the Omdel and Kuiseb Delta aquifers in combination with Orano’s production. Still, total supply barely reaches 30 million m³ a year and is essentially maxed out.
The Chamber of Mines recently warned of a 500 m³/hour shortfall along the coast, driven by industrial growth and rapidly expanding towns.
Husab lies at the centre of this strain. As the world’s largest open-pit uranium mine and the single biggest water user in the Erongo Region, Husab is second only to Windhoek in Namibia’s national consumption profile. Estimates suggest the mine requires around 9 million m³ of water annually, which is close to two-thirds of the region’s total bulk demand.
With additional uranium projects progressing and existing operations increasing throughput, the traditional mix of groundwater and Orano desalinated water can no longer carry the load.
The government has spoken of a second large desalination plant since the late 1990s. In June 2024, agriculture, water and land reform minister Calle Schlettwein confirmed that approval had finally been granted for a facility capable of producing about 20 million m³ a year, calling it a project “on the cards since 1998”. He cautioned that Erongo’s natural sources were at their limit and that intensifying mining, hydrogen investments and urban growth were driving demand far beyond what aquifers and the Orano plant could reliably supply.
The NamWater–Swakop Uranium venture anchors that long-anticipated second plant. According to statements issued by both parties, the Erongo Sunam facility will match the 20-million-m³ scale outlined by the minister.
It will supply Husab directly while allowing the excess to flow into NamWater’s regional network to support other mines and surrounding communities.
For the uranium sector, the development is expected to bring long-term stability to water supply and pricing. Mines in Erongo have increasingly reduced their dependence on dwindling groundwater reserves; the addition of another large seawater plant should help prevent interruptions caused by aquifer depletion, infrastructure bottlenecks, or prolonged drought.
The project also aligns with NamWater’s strategy to make desalination central to coastal industrial development rather than treating it as a stopgap for individual mines.
The timing is significant.
Namibia is facing what officials describe as the most severe drought in a century, prompting President Nangolo Mbumba to declare a national state of emergency. Erongo, home not only to uranium mines but also to Namibia’s ports, logistics chain, tourism hubs and emerging green hydrogen projects, requires a secure and expanded water base.
The additional 20 million m³ of desalinated water is intended to support industrial expansion and the delivery of essential services to towns.
The joint venture has now moved into its execution stage, with plans to register the project company, advance detailed engineering, undertake environmental assessments, secure financing and plan construction. Once operational, Erongo Sunam will work alongside the Orano plant in an integrated coastal system where Swakop Uranium shoulders most of the financial exposure and NamWater ensures the wider region—not just one operation—benefits from the new capacity.
In essence, for Namibia’s desert uranium belt, the plant is not an optional upgrade but the next step in a long-term transition from overstressed aquifers to large-scale desalination as the only sustainable foundation for future growth.
NamWater confirmed this week that it has concluded a joint venture with Swakop Uranium, a subsidiary of China General Nuclear Power Group, to develop the Erongo Sunam Desalination Project near Swakopmund.
The plant, expected to cost about N$3 billion (around US$176 million), will be funded and operated by Swakop Uranium, which holds a 70% stake, while NamWater’s 30% share will place it in charge of regulatory oversight and of integrating the new supply into the national system.
The installation will become Namibia’s second major coastal desalination facility. The first, the Orano (Erongo) Desalination Plant at Wlotzkasbaken, was constructed between 2008 and 2010 to serve the Trekkopje uranium mine.
It now delivers as much as 20 million cubic metres of potable water annually to mines and towns including Walvis Bay, Swakopmund, Arandis and Henties Bay, and has pumped more than 123 million m³ into the regional network since 2010.
Even with that output, the coastal mining corridor has faced persistent water constraints. Mines and municipalities have long depended on the Omdel and Kuiseb Delta aquifers in combination with Orano’s production. Still, total supply barely reaches 30 million m³ a year and is essentially maxed out.
The Chamber of Mines recently warned of a 500 m³/hour shortfall along the coast, driven by industrial growth and rapidly expanding towns.
Husab lies at the centre of this strain. As the world’s largest open-pit uranium mine and the single biggest water user in the Erongo Region, Husab is second only to Windhoek in Namibia’s national consumption profile. Estimates suggest the mine requires around 9 million m³ of water annually, which is close to two-thirds of the region’s total bulk demand.
With additional uranium projects progressing and existing operations increasing throughput, the traditional mix of groundwater and Orano desalinated water can no longer carry the load.
The government has spoken of a second large desalination plant since the late 1990s. In June 2024, agriculture, water and land reform minister Calle Schlettwein confirmed that approval had finally been granted for a facility capable of producing about 20 million m³ a year, calling it a project “on the cards since 1998”. He cautioned that Erongo’s natural sources were at their limit and that intensifying mining, hydrogen investments and urban growth were driving demand far beyond what aquifers and the Orano plant could reliably supply.
The NamWater–Swakop Uranium venture anchors that long-anticipated second plant. According to statements issued by both parties, the Erongo Sunam facility will match the 20-million-m³ scale outlined by the minister.
It will supply Husab directly while allowing the excess to flow into NamWater’s regional network to support other mines and surrounding communities.
For the uranium sector, the development is expected to bring long-term stability to water supply and pricing. Mines in Erongo have increasingly reduced their dependence on dwindling groundwater reserves; the addition of another large seawater plant should help prevent interruptions caused by aquifer depletion, infrastructure bottlenecks, or prolonged drought.
The project also aligns with NamWater’s strategy to make desalination central to coastal industrial development rather than treating it as a stopgap for individual mines.
The timing is significant.
Namibia is facing what officials describe as the most severe drought in a century, prompting President Nangolo Mbumba to declare a national state of emergency. Erongo, home not only to uranium mines but also to Namibia’s ports, logistics chain, tourism hubs and emerging green hydrogen projects, requires a secure and expanded water base.
The additional 20 million m³ of desalinated water is intended to support industrial expansion and the delivery of essential services to towns.
The joint venture has now moved into its execution stage, with plans to register the project company, advance detailed engineering, undertake environmental assessments, secure financing and plan construction. Once operational, Erongo Sunam will work alongside the Orano plant in an integrated coastal system where Swakop Uranium shoulders most of the financial exposure and NamWater ensures the wider region—not just one operation—benefits from the new capacity.
In essence, for Namibia’s desert uranium belt, the plant is not an optional upgrade but the next step in a long-term transition from overstressed aquifers to large-scale desalination as the only sustainable foundation for future growth.
