CM Inspects Nemmeli, Perur Desalination Plants Worth Over Rs 5,800 Crore

PRESS RELEASE Hon'ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Thiru C. Joseph Vijay today (6.7.2026) personally inspected the desalination plants at Nemmeli, with a capacity of 110 and 150 million litres per day (MLD), and the works of the new Perur seawater desalination project, being built at an estimated cost of Rs. 5,814.57 crore with a capacity of 400 MLD, aimed at meeting the drinking water needs of Greater Chennai Corporation areas. At present, 1,230 million litres of drinking water per day is being supplied to areas under Greater Chennai Corporation through the Poondi, Cholavaram, Puzhal and Kannankottai Serva canal schemes, the Chembarambakkam and Veeranam lakes, and the Nemmeli seawater desalination plants with a combined capacity of 110 and 150 MLD. In view of the growing demand for drinking water, the Perur seawater desalination project, with a capacity of 400 MLD, is being implemented at an estimated cost of Rs. 5,814.57 crore. The Hon'ble Chief Minister personally inspected the functioning of the Intake Sump, the RO Building (Reverse Osmosis plant) and the SCADA monitoring system at the existing 110 and 150 MLD desalination plants at Nemmeli. He then inspected the works of the new 400 MLD Perur seawater desalination project. At this new plant, construction works are underway in full swing for the Intake Structure, Lamella Clarifier, RO Permeate Tank, Neutralization Pit, Product Water Tank, Clear Water Reservoir, Sludge Thickener, Admin Building, Warehouse, Limestone Filter, RO Building, RO Feed Tank, Dissolved Air Flotation unit, Gravity Dual Media Filter, Chemical Building, Electrical Building and Workshop. As part of the marine works, HDPE pipes of 2,500 mm diameter have been laid on the seabed. Two intake pipelines measuring 1,200 metres and 1,210 metres in length, and an 840-metre brine outfall pipeline, have been completed. The intake caisson tower has been connected to the terminal end of the pipes laid in the sea. As part of the pipeline-laying works for this project, construction of the pumping station and clear water reservoir, and the laying of 2000/1800/1000 mm diameter pipelines over a stretch of 59 kilometres from Perur to Porur, are being carried out. For this purpose, pipes have been procured for a length of 41.51 km, of which laying works have been completed for 12.36 km and are continuing. ECR-grade steel pipes have been used, with 2,000 mm diameter pipes laid over 27.1 km and pipes of other diameters laid over 7.74 km. This project will provide an additional 400 MLD of drinking water to Chennai city; the drinking water supply currently reaching about 20 lakh people will thereby be extended to cover a further 22.67 lakh people. Once the new 400 MLD Perur seawater desalination project is completed, it will meet the long-term drinking water needs of Chennai city and ensure a stable drinking water supply even during periods of drought. The inspection was attended by the Minister for Municipal Administration and Water Supply, the Mayor of Chennai, the Managing Director of the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB), and senior officials of the Board. Issued By: - DIPR, Secretariat, Chennai – 9 [Note: In the original source document, a number of statistics, tabular content and name details could not be fully recovered due to OCR corruption; only the portions that could be clearly and reliably read have been reconstructed here.]