Rand Water

R A N D W AT E R

Katse Dam Lesotho

RAND WATER

Increased Demand No Problem for Rand Water PRODUCTION: William Denstone

Rand Water is the largest water utility in Africa, supplying potable water to the Gauteng province and other areas of the country. The company battles geographical and climate factors to deliver a reliable, high-quality supply as demand refuses to abate in the region.

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The question of water provision has never loomed so large as over the last 12 months or so, with recollections of the drought that gripped South Africa - which will be remembered in the big cities as one of the worst in living memory - so fresh in the mind.

It also proved catastrophic in the bush and remote communal lands, even while attention was fixed

mainly on what it was feared would become ‘Day Zero’ water shortages: in the Kruger National Park it killed off more than 25% of the park’s buffalo population, about 45% of the hippos and up to 40% of trees and shrubs in some parts of the park.

The water crisis peaked during mid-2017 to mid-2018 where levels hovered between 15 to 30% of total dam capacity. In response, the City of

Cape Town implemented significant water restrictions in a bid to curb water usage, and succeeded in reducing its daily water usage by more than half to around 500 million litres per day in March 2018.

The fall in water usage, combined with strong rains in June 2018, led dam levels to steadily increase to close to 70% and allowed the city to begin easing water restrictions.

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INDUSTRY FOCUS: INFRASTRUCTURE

SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHALLENGES The rainfall climate of South Africa is one which is infamously variable. Since 1960, seasonal deviations demonstrate wide fluctuations in the long-term average. Deficits of 25% are normally enough to be considered a severe meteorological drought, but even a shortfall of 20% from normal rainfall will cause crop and water shortfalls in many regions, likely accompanied by social and economic hardship.

In addition, South Africa has a wider variety of climates than most other countries in sub-Saharan Africa, coupled with lower average temperatures than other countries within this range of latitude, like Australia, because much of the interior of South Africa is at higher elevation.

Tasked with securing supply amid these myriad demanding factors, Rand Water began full operations over a century ago in 1905. By 1906 the annual daily consumption of water supplied by

Rand Water was around 11 Megaliters per day (Ml/d), a figure which has been growing ever since.

“Rand Water’s major challenge to date has been to augment its water sources to meet the growing demand,” the company states of the gruelling landscape in which it operates. To overcome these challenges, Rand Water has, over more than 100 years, put in place a series of major schemes to respond to the demand for water in an area where it is notoriously scarce.

Bulk Water Supply Pipelines for Rand Water Hall Longmore has, for many years, manufactured steel pipe for bulk water infrastructure administered by Rand Water in and around Gauteng and as far East as the Bushbuckridge Area in Mpumalanga.

Rand Water are currently in the midst of a major expansion programme with pipelines destined for installation at different sites in the region from Nigel in the East to Roodepoort in the West and Vereeniging in the South to Midrand in the North. With production of Phase 2 well under way, many thousands of tons of steel coil has been processed into pipe using the spiral submerged arc welding process.

According to Kenny van Rooyen, Managing Director of Hall Longmore, “Rand Water sets high standards for the pipe supplied to their projects and has consistently prepared specifications comparable to the best in the world.

“For Rand Water in particular, pipe is purpose made according to client dimensions and specifications to the highest recognised international manufacturing and quality standards, to which Hall Longmore has all the appropriate accreditations.

“The manufacture of pipe is optimised through a sophisticated production schedule which seamlessly integrates the requirement of each order. This includes, for example, the grade and thickness of steel (pipe wall thickness), diameter, protective coatings and linings if required, pipe end preparation and delivery date,” he said.

The logistics of delivering pipe is equally important”, says van Rooyen. “Pipe length, diameter and mass are key factors to consider in determining the number of delivery loads required for a project. Generally pipes for bulk water projects are supplied in lengths of over 18 metres and bespoke Hall Longmore truck and trailers are used to ensure safe transportation.”

According to van Rooyen the main advantages of using the spiral welded manufacturing process is that pipe is produced economically with an almost infinite variety of diameters and thicknesses. In addition, further economies are achieved through pipes obtaining their final shape on the pipe mill without any need for further treatment such as straightening and calibrating.

As with all buried pipelines, pipes for Rand Water projects are specially coated and lined to prevent corrosion and, to this end, Hall Longmore provides the widest range of coating options in the South African market and remain at the forefront of new and developing technologies. All coating and lining options extend to satisfying a wide variety of client specifications and are applied to and measured against the highest international standards Hall Longmore has enjoyed sustained success with supplying pipe products to a number of large international and Southern African projects for the transportation of water, gas and petro-chemicals. To this end, Hall Longmore has demonstrated that it is committed to being a strategic partner in the growth of the South African economy.

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Established in 1924

Steel Pipe for Water, Petrochemicals, Gas, Construction and Mining Hall Longmore ranks amongst the most reputable pipe manufacturers in the world.

The company’s world-class manufacturing facilities produce large-bore welded steel pipes for a variety of applications.

Electric Resistance Welded Steel Pipe Oil Country Tubular Goods Helical Submerged Arc Welded Pipe International Quality Standards International SpeciďŹ cation Coatings and Linings

+27 11 874 7300

info@hall-longmore.co.za www.hall-longmore.co.za

INDUSTRY FOCUS: INFRASTRUCTURE

The Vaal Dam project in 1938 was perhaps the breakthrough development in this timeline, yielding an unprecedented 354 Ml/d supply, while since 1998, the Lesotho Highlands Water Project has been Rand Water’s go-to source. As early as 1954, the Natural Resources Development Council proposed the idea that water might be obtained from Lesotho to bolster that of the Vaal River, leading to a three-phase scheme including four major dams: Senqu in Lesotho, Ash River in the Free State, Wilge River and the Vaal Dam. Municipal customers account for 95% of the total requirement, with direct supply to some 40 mines making up most of the balance.

Among its customers are Metropolitan Municipal Councils - City of Joburg, City of Ekurhuleni, City of Tshwane - 13 municipalities and 26 industries and direct customers. From the two primary Rand Water purification plants pump, bulk water is distributed through a total network of 3500km bulk pipelines and 60 storage reservoirs.

WATER WEEK Water security is undeniably one of the biggest challenges facing South Africa, and the world as a whole, in the 21st century, particularly in the developing world. South Africans currently consume more water per capita than the world average - approximately 237 litres per day compared to roughly 173 litres. The highest consumption was reported for Gauteng, which notched up 305 litres per person each day.

Furthermore, South Africa has a semiarid climate, with an average annual rainfall of 465 mm, compared to the world average of 860 mm. As a result, South Africa’s water resources are scarce and extremely limited. National Water Week this year included Human Rights Day, celebrated on 21 March, because water is regarded as a basic human right in South Africa.

Safe drinking water and the importance of washing of hands for a healthy and hygienic lifestyle are highlighted in the government’s campaign.

Lesotho Highlands Water Project © Travel Lesotho

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As part of the conservation efforts, the Department of Water and Sanitation recently assured the public that tap water in the country is safe for human consumption. While it is disputed that 11 litres are needed to bottle just one litre of water, it is certainly true that if water needs to be treated through processes like reverse osmosis, deionisation or ultrafiltration, the amount of water required increases drastically.

The establishment of the Blue

// CURRENTLY OUR BULK WATER NETWORK SUPPLYING OUR CUSTOMERS REMAINS STABLE AND WE ARE MANAGING DEMAND AS NORMAL //

RAND WATER

Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) company with a solid track record in the Water Infrastructure, Mining and Mineral Processing, Food and Beverage, Oil & Gas (Petrochemicals) Industries. COENG has a welldeveloped Integrated Management System (IMS) certified to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001.

COENG foster skills development, innovation, localization through global partnerships with international water, petrochemical, mining and power technology developers. We aim to build a reputation for excellence in delivery of high quality, technologically advanced and sustainable solutions to our clients.

// Engineering // Procurement // Construction  +27 (12) 450 3700

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Drop programme, a measure put in place to ensure that water services institutions deliver good quality water, that complies with the South African Drinking Water Quality Standard (SANS 241), was therefore exactly the response needed to public concerns. The SANS 241 is aligned with the World Health Organisation’s guidelines for drinking water, and government was at pains

// RAND WATER’S MAJOR CHALLENGE TO DATE HAS BEEN TO AUGMENT ITS WATER SOURCES TO MEET THE GROWING DEMAND //

+27 (86) 547 7943

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info@coeng.co.za

to, “reassure tourists and the general public that water in South Africa is of a high-quality standard.”

STEADY SUPPLY Total average daily demand for the Rand Water network is projected to increase to around 5500 Mℓ/d by 2030. This gives an average rate of demand growth of 1.75% per annum over this period.

Phase 2 of the Lesotho Highlands Water Scheme (LHWS), expected to be completed by 2024 and deliver more than 1000 Mℓ/d, will offset greatly the current exceeding of Rand Water’s raw water quota allowed by the Department of Water and Sanitation from the Vaal River System.

Despite the ongoing inconvenience of load shedding, the Rand Water System, which serves approximately 12 million people, remains stable and steady. While

 www.coeng.co.za

cautiously optimistic, Media Relations Manager Justice Mohale clarified that the utility was “closely monitoring” the possible impact of load shedding, particularly as some of its capacity has been lost due to increased demand caused by high temperatures.

“In the event that load shedding levels are elevated or prolonged, Rand Water will communicate the impact thereof,” explained Mohale.

“Currently our bulk water network supplying our customers remains stable and we are managing demand as normal,” he concluded.

WWW.RANDWATER.CO.ZA

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Published by CMB Media Group Chris Bolderstone – General Manager E. chris@cmb-media.co.uk Sackville Place, 44-48 Magdalen Street, Norwich, NR3 1JU T. +44 (0) 20 8123 7859 E. info@cmb-media.co.uk www.cmb-media.co.uk CMB Media Group does not accept responsibility for omissions or errors. The points of view expressed in articles by attributing writers and/ or in advertisements included in this magazine do not necessarily represent those of the publisher.

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