A $270 million desalination plant planned for Carlsbad, which has navigated a number of permitting hurdles in past months, is flowing smoothly and harpooning a few sales, according to Peter M. MacLaggan, senior vice president of Poseidon Resources Corp.’s San Diego office.
Planned for the Encina Power Station in coastal North County by the Connecticut-based Poseidon Resources, the plant would treat enough seawater to produce some 50 million gallons a day of high-quality drinking water — enough to initially meet the needs of about 225,000 people.

According to MacLaggan, Carlsbad will use half the output from the plant, considered to be a model for the rest of the country. Poseidon Resources also has entered into a contract with the Valley Center Municipal District for 7,500 acre-feet per year of the water; has a letter of intent with the Olivenhain Municipal Water District for 5,000 acre-feet; and a pending deal with the Rincon del Diablo Municipal Water District for 4,000 acre-feet.

MacLaggan said the goal is to complete all of the permitting and water sales arrangements by year’s end, with construction planned for early 2007, and the plant going on line in 2008.

On Feb. 1, Poseidon announced that it had invited three contractor teams to submit binding offers for the engineering, procurement and construction of the desal plant.

They are Irvine-based Tetra Tech, Inc., in a joint venture with Israeli Desalination Engineering, San Francisco-based JF Shea and Hydranautics in Oceanside; San Diego-based Clark Construction, in a joint venture with Befesa of Madrid, Spain, and URS in San Francisco; and Houston-based American Water Services, in a joint venture with Madrid-based Pridesa, Denver-based Western Summit and PBS&J in Miami.

“Each team is a good mix of local expertise in construction, engineering and international experience in the desal world,” said MacLaggan, who added a decision on the contract will be made in late spring or early summer.

Tim Stripe, the chairman of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce and co-president of the Grand Pacific Resorts in Carlsbad, has high hopes for Poseidon’s potential impact on the community.

“You want to promote business, and a private industry coming into town will make way for a lot of new jobs, and very well-paying jobs,” he said. “I think we recognize, being one of the large hoteliers here in the city, that it is necessary to have a steady stream of water, that you can own and absolutely predict.

Regional Perspective

Meanwhile, Poseidon has been meeting regularly with the San Diego County Water Authority about the possibility of developing a regional desal plant, which would go on line in 2011 if agreement is reached, according to Ken Weinberg, the Water Authority’s director of water resources.

The agency will be completing its environmental impact review of the regional plan by the end of February, said Weinberg.
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