A water supply project has been initiated in Madi, Nepal, with several Danish companies bringing their expertise to the construction site. The project is called Water2Nepal, and we are eager to follow the development.
Tailoring the right solution
Water2Nepal covers the construction of a distribution pipe network that will supply 4,000 people with water through a daily capacity of 350 m3. The network will cover a 16 km long pipeline solution fully equipped with assets from AVK, JC Hansen and other project partners.
The purpose of the project is to:
- Deliver clean drinking water to three villages
- Test new technology and practice to obtain a high-quality solution
- Train and educate the new generation of water engineers
- Define the future criteria for water supply in Nepal
The final contracts were signed in March 2022. The solution's design has now been approved, the entrepreneurs have been identified, and construction and drilling have begun.
The Grundfos Foundation (Poul Due Jensen Fond) contributed funding for the project, which was started by the nonprofit organisation Jysk landsbyudvikling I Nepal (Jysk Village Development in Nepal) and is overseen by engineering consulting firm Envidan. Upon construction, the Madi Municipality will oversee the supply system while Oxfam Nepal will be in charge.
According to Surya Prajapati, project engineer for the Danish Envidan team, the fact that Khushbu Nirman Sewa Pvt Ltd. has been chosen as the contractor is advantageous for the project because they have a lot of expertise with difficulties and projects comparable to this one.
In addition to AVK, the project's primary contributors include Grundfos (pumps and Power Adapt), JLIN (project owner), Kamstrup (smart metres and data system), Envidan (project management and design), Oxfam (local anchoring), local entities in Madi Municipality, and a large group of local volunteers.
The above 3D illustration shows how the final solution is expected to look when finalised. Illustration: Surya Prajapati.
Prepping the community for system hand-over
Envidan and Danish water utilities experts will closely monitor the construction phases to ensure quality at every stage. They will also ensure that the appointed technicians and supervisors are fully prepared to take over maintenance and operation tasks once the system is operational. Because much of the technology and hardware is new and unknown to the local operation teams, ongoing training and education are required to ensure that the system runs as efficiently and sustainably as possible.
The preparations will not stop there, as Envidan will work with Kathmandu University and Oxfam to educate future engineers on the design criteria for sustainable and efficient water supply in remote areas.
Sustainable operation
The complete solution will include the distribution network, a water tower, a solar panel installation as well as a technical facility near the water tower where panels can display an overview of the current supply details in terms of quantity and water quality. To ensure the water quality, there will be performed tests from the network several times a year.
To have their home connected to the main pipeline, the residents will be paying a one-time fee corresponding to 60 USD to ensure a sustainable foundation for operation.
The system is expected to be finalised by the beginning of 2024, but the residents might be able to start tapping water from their homes within 2023 as soon as the wells and distribution network are up and running.
A proper water solution needs quality valves
One of the main ingredients in a sustainable water network are valves that are reliable, efficient and of high quality, to avoid the hassle of cutting off vital processes in order to switch out products or perform maintenance.AVK has taken part in work meets online during the planning phases and offered to donate and ship valves and accessories for the distribution network. The valves reached the construction site in Madi on August 30th and are now waiting to be installed.
