Rehabilitation, expansion of Japoma water treatment plant: CAMWATER engages Norwegian company, INRIGO AS.

During the signing ceremony at CAMWATER’s headquarters in Douala on Thursday June 19, 2025, the Cameroon Water Utilities Corporation was represented by its Director General, Dr Blaise Moussa, while the Chief Executive Officer of INRIGO SA, Reza Hezari signed for his company.

The large-scale project falls in line with CAMWATER's Five-Year Priority Investment Programme 2023-2027 and Strategic Development Plan 2026-2030. 

The planned work is ambitious and aims to fundamentally transform this water supply infrastructure for part of the city of Douala. The objective is to improve the rate of access to drinking water services to reach 85% in urban and peri-urban areas by 2032.

The production capacity of the Japoma plant will see a substantial increase, from 55,000 m³/day to 123,000 m³/day.

This significant increase will guarantee access to sufficient quantity and quality drinking water for thousands of users, thus meeting a crucial need in the economic metropolis. 

The project is not limited to a simple rehabilitation and extension, as it encompasses a series of strategic interventions to modernise and improve the reliability of the system. 

It will also see the rehabilitation and reinforcement of the Massoumbou-Japoma freshwater channel, including the construction of a new raw water pumping station with a capacity of 68,000 m³/day; 

The rehabilitation and reconstruction of the raw water intake and pumping station on the Dibamba River, also with a capacity of 68,000 m³/day is also included in the project.

As part of the project, a new treatment plant will be constructed, integrating a pretreatment and membrane filtration system, as well as a treated water discharge station.

The contracting company is also expected to reconstruct operating buildings and install essential related facilities, including wastewater treatment lagoons, power supply and control systems, a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition, SCADA, system for optimised monitoring, treated water tanks, a metering system and a backup generator. 

The project fully aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6, which aims to ensure access to water and sanitation for all. The Norwegian company is said to provide expertise that guarantees quality and reliability for CAMWATER. 

INGRIGO SA, is renowned for its water treatment solutions, including engineering, the supply of cutting-edge equipment such as submersible pumps, frequency converters, transformers and the integration of complex systems, including membrane filtration and SCADA systems. The collaboration will also enable valuable skills development and transfer for CAMWATER's local teams.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3483 of Tuesday June 24, 2025