WA Government Considers Esperance Desalination Plant Alongside Pipeline Upgrade

The West Australian government is weighing up plans for another desalination plant on the south coast as work on a $543 million upgrade to the historic Goldfields water pipeline ramps up.

Speaking at Kalgoorlie's Mt Charlotte Reservoir, where water from the Golden Pipeline first flowed in 1903, Premier Roger Cook said the upgrades would "futureproof" the Goldfields and Wheatbelt regions for generations.

Mr Cook also conceded decades-old proposals for a desalination plant at Esperance, 700km south-east of Perth, could form part of plans to secure the water supply for WA's inland communities.

It is a significant backflip for the government, which strongly criticised the WA Nationals for pushing the proposal during last year's state election.

"We looked very closely at the idea of a desal plant at Esperance and then piping it up to Kalgoorlie," Mr Cook said.

"It was decided, through engineering design, that we were better off increasing the capacity of the Goldfields pipeline rather than building a whole new pipeline up from Esperance.

"I think we will need a desalination plant at Esperance. We will need desalination plants the length and breadth of this state, both as part of a growing economy and drying planet, so that's going to be an important piece of work.

"Whether you ultimately see a desalination plant in Esperance feeding the Goldfields region more generally or simply meeting the needs of the growing Esperance community, I think you will need desal there."

During last year's election the WA Nationals promised to put $100 million towards an Esperance desalination plant to pipe water to Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

But Labor's then-water minister Simone McGurk dismissed the proposal as "unviable" and a "thought bubble".

On Monday, Water Minister Daniel Pastorelli confirmed the government utility Water Corporation was in the early stages of planning for a desalination project at Esperance.

Construction is also progressing on two significant desalination plants in WA: the $2.8 billion Alkimos plant near Perth and the $1.1 billion Dampier plant in the Pilbara.

There are also plans for another plant at Albany in the Great Southern.

Upgrades boost pipeline capacity

The premier's comments about water security come after two key contracts, worth $170 million, were awarded in July to upgrade the capacity of the historic Goldfields Water Supply Scheme.

The 566km-long pipeline was commissioned 123 years ago and supplies drinking water to more than 100,000 people across the Wheatbelt and Goldfields.

Mr Pastorelli said work on the pipeline upgrades are now underway, with about 44.5km of pipeline to be replaced through the Wheatbelt shires of Merredin, Westonia and Yilgarn.

It is expected to increase the pipeline's daily capacity by 7.2 million litres, or about 10 per cent, by the end of 2027.

Water demand rising

Mr Pastorelli said demand for water in the Goldfields had increased by 16 per cent since 2021, driven by the booming resources sector, and that the upgrades should satisfy existing demand "for some time" based on current projections.

"This infrastructure will last … the pipes are being manufactured locally and will last for up to 150 years," he said.

Mr Pastorelli said the government expected to award tenders in coming months for subsequent works at Binduli Reservoir near Kalgoorlie-Boulder, which would double its capacity from 400 to 800 million litres.

Kalgoorlie-Boulder Mayor Glenn Wilson welcomed the investment in the pipeline.

"Water is a precious commodity here … none of us would be in Kalgoorlie without it [the pipeline]," he said.

"After many years where there wasn't much maintenance or love for the pipeline, it's great to see that investment … it will help grow our economy."

The WA Nationals and the Shadow Minister for Water, Peter Rundle, who is based in Esperance as the member for Roe, have been contacted for comment.