AN arm of Northumbria Water is about to tender for a £20m private finance initiative project to build a sewage plant for Gibraltar.

The British colony currently discharges its waste into the fast-flowing waters of the Gibraltar Straits, but will soon have to build a treatment works to comply with European law.

Lyonnaise Des Eaux (Gibraltar) Ltd has the contract to supply water to the peninsula's 30,000 residents and six million annual visitors and hopes to secure the contract to build and operate the plant which will be built into a cave.

The firm is part of Ondeco Services UK, formerly the Northumbrian Water Group, which has its headquarters in Pity Me, near Durham City, and provides water for 2.6 million customers in the North-East and 1.7 million in Essex and Sussex.

Alistair Baker, communications manager for Northumbria Water, said: "There are very strong working links between Northumbria Water and Lyonnaise Des Eaux (Gibraltar) in water supply in particular.

"Northumbria Water and Ondeo Services UK has the technical knowledge and expertise in sewage treatment. Within the Ondeo group there are other companies also with relevant specialist technological know-how so who actually bids from the group has yet to decided."

A lot will depend on how the government of Gibraltar views a bid from Lyonnaise.

Such a move could be seen as a competitions issue because the company owns a two-thirds stake as part of a joint initiative with the government providing water supplies to Gibraltar.

It is possible that another arm of the Suez water group, parent company of Ondeo Services UK, will make a bid when the contract is put out to tender.

Manuel Perez, managing director of Lyonnaise Des Eaux (Gibraltar) Ltd, expressed his desire to secure the urban waste water treatment plant project.

"We think Ondeo is the right choice," he said.

"The Government is required by EU directive to go to competitive tender and obviously there will be other competitors.

"But we are the best choice because Ondeo has managed projects of this scope and size in other parts of the world.

"It is important to have this contract, certainly for Lyonnaise Des Eaux (Gibraltar) because we would like to run and operate the plant.

"It would be an area of expansion of our business here in Gibraltar."

European legislation has forced the Government of Gibraltar to create a sewage plant capable of processing waste to a primary level.

Peter Caruana , chief minister, told The Northern Echo that this project was unique because, in time, the plant would provide secondary treatment also.

"There is not another place in Europe with a secondary treatment plant for 30,000 people," he said.

"The capital investment is in the order of £20m. These are huge investments."

More than just a water supplier

NORTHUMBRIA Water's (NW) influence stretches worldwide with a range of projects that impact on millions of people. Here are a few examples:

* In addition to 2.6 million customers in the North-East, the company supplies water to 1.7 million people in Essex and Suffolk.

* The group owns a 50 per cent share of WSSA (Water and Sanitation Services, South Africa) which serves two million people.

* It is a joint venture partner in the Johannesburg Water Management company operating water and sewage services for six million customers.

* In Cork, Ireland, there is an ongoing venture to build and operate a waste water treatment and sludge drying for an equivalent population of 440,000. It is a 60m euro capital expenditure (capex) programme with 3m euros operating expenditure (opex).

* In Scotland, a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) with CELTS (Caledonian Environmental Levenmouth Treatment Services) to build and operate sewage treatment works, pumping stations and sewers to clean up the Firth of Forth. It is a £45m capex, £3m opex project for a population equivalent of 400,000.

* A second PFI programme on the west of Scotland for AyrEs, Ayr Environmental Services, building three sewage treatment works as part of the Ayrshire coast and Clyde estuary clean-up. A population equivalent of 450,000 will benefit from the £50m capex, £3.6m opex project.

* In Oslo, it is working with Baerum Vann formerly providing operational expertise as a shareholder and now working on a technical assistance programme for 50,000 people.

* The group is bidding for work in Scandinavia and Ireland.

* Former Northumbria Water employees hold a range of senior positions, not least Tony Harding, former managing director, who is regional director for Ondeo Services in South East Asia.

* Other staff are based in Singapore, Macau, Shanghai, Lebanon, Atlanta, New Jersey and Pittsburgh in the United States, France and Jordan.