Nation’s first 500-meter underwater water plant planned for next year

The Male' Water and Sewerage Company Limited (MWSC) is preparing to start producing water from 500 meters below sea level by the middle of next year, Managing Director Hussain Fahumy said.

Speaking on a state media programme, Fahumy said the plant will be developed in collaboration with an experienced Norwegian company that has already achieved significant success with subsea desalination technology.

He said the project is being successfully implemented in Norway, and a technical team from MWSC is scheduled to visit the site to gain hands-on experience.

“First of all, we are looking at the financial feasibility, how big the investment will be. There are huge advantages: energy efficiency, ease of discharging, rejecting water into the sea, and the salt content at 500 meters is very clean,” Fahumy said.

He added that the high natural pressure at 500 meters depth would reduce operational costs. Fahumy noted that this would be a major improvement for a country like Maldives, where land scarcity limits the installation of new water plants on inhabited islands.

At the same time, pipelines will be laid to supply water to Male' and Hulhumale' along the Thilamale' Bridge, he said. MWSC plans to supply water to the city and the port after installing a water storage system in Thilafushi or Gulhifalhu. Discussions are underway with the government to begin the project before the bridge is completed, he added.

MWSC is developing the project under a partnership with FLOCEAN, a Norwegian company that specialises in subsea desalination. The technology uses natural ocean pressure at 500 meters to cut energy use and reduce membrane fouling, as deep-sea water contains fewer contaminants. It also allows safer brine discharge at depth and offers a long‑term solution for Male', where land scarcity limits the construction of new water plants. MWSC engineers will receive training in Norway as part of the feasibility and technical studies now underway.