Chile Approves $5B Desalination Plant, Largest Mining-Water Project Since 2018
Chile’s Comisión de Evaluación Ambiental for the Antofagasta Region unanimously approved on Monday, May 4, 2026, the Aguas Marítimas desalination project promoted by Cramsa Infraestructura SpA, with a 5 billion U.S. dollar investment that makes it the largest desalination plant in Chile and one of the largest in Latin America.
The plant will produce 700,000 cubic metres of desalinated water per day from a Caleta Bolfín seawater intake of 1,685,000 cubic metres per day. The approval is the largest single project the Sistema de Evaluación Ambiental has cleared since the Quebrada Blanca copper expansion of Teck in 2018.
Key Points
Key Facts
— COEVA Antofagasta unanimously approved Cramsa’s Aguas Marítimas desalination project on Monday, May 4, 2026.
— Investment of 5 billion U.S. dollars makes it the largest desalination plant in Chile and one of the largest in Latin America.
— Plant capacity 700,000 m3/day final, with 350,000 m3/day initial, 8,100 litres per second total.
— Caleta Bolfín seawater intake at 1,685,000 m3/day; brine discharge at 985,000 m3/day.
— First mega-mining-water project approval since Quebrada Blanca of Teck in 2018, per SEA records.
— Operations start scheduled for first half of 2029, with 70-year operational life through first half of 2099.
— 8,500 jobs at peak construction; one of four projects totalling 5.341 billion U.S. dollars approved by COEVA the same evening.
What COEVA Approved
The 12 representatives of the public services that compose the Comisión de Evaluación Ambiental of the Antofagasta Region voted unanimously on Monday evening to approve the Environmental Impact Study of the Aguas Marítimas project. The approval was accompanied by a favourable Informe Consolidado de Evaluación issued by the Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental.
The project will be located at Caleta Bolfín, 12 to 15 kilometres south of the Antofagasta urban limit. Cramsa filed the Environmental Impact Study in March 2022, totalling more than four years of permitting. Construction is scheduled to begin in the first half of 2027 and conclude in the first half of 2032 per the Informe Consolidado, with operations starting in the first half of 2029 and continuing through the first half of 2099.
Capacity, Conduit, and Coverage
The plant will reach 700,000 cubic metres per day final capacity from an 8,100-litres-per-second intake, distributing initially 350,000 cubic metres per day. Cramsa will build a 480-kilometre water-conduit system, 17 pumping stations and 350 kilometres of electrical transmission lines, serving Antofagasta, Calama and Sierra Gorda for mining, agricultural, industrial and eventually human-consumption uses.
Why It Matters
The Rio Times, the Latin American financial news outlet, reports that the Cramsa approval represents a watershed for Chile’s mining-water nexus. The Atacama Desert region of Antofagasta and Tarapacá produces around half of global copper output, and water scarcity has been the binding constraint on production expansion for over a decade.
The Asociación Chilena de Desalación y Reúso and the Corporación de Bienes de Capital have catalogued 51 desalination projects nationally totalling 24.5 billion U.S. dollars, of which 16 hold environmental approval and 10 are in construction. The Cramsa project alone represents roughly one-sixth of total catalogued investment.
| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| Investment | USD 5 billion |
| Total capacity | 700,000 m3/day, 8,100 L/s |
| Initial capacity | 350,000 m3/day |
| Seawater intake | 1,685,000 m3/day |
| Brine discharge | 985,000 m3/day |
| Conduit length | 480 km |
| Construction window | 2027-2032 |
| Operations 2029-2099 | 70-year operational life |
| Peak workforce | 8,500 jobs |
Cramsa Statement and Permitting Hurdles
Cramsa General Manager Peter Hatton said the approval confirmed the importance of timely, clear and transparent information for building community-relationship trust. During the 4-year evaluation, Cramsa requested a temporary suspension in December 2025 to conduct additional studies on the chinchilla lanígera, an endangered species in the project’s area of influence; the process resumed in February 2026. Six citizen-participation sessions were organised by the SEA across Antofagasta Region.
Same-day COEVA approvals totalled four projects worth 5.341 billion U.S. dollars combined. For broader context, see our coverage of Chilean President Kast’s first months in office and our analysis of the Colombian presidential election that frames the regional copper-water investment cycle.
What Happens Next
- 2027 construction start: First half of 2027, per the Informe Consolidado de Evaluación, with foundation works and seawater-intake construction at Caleta Bolfín.
- Mining-customer commitments: Industries and miners along the conduit route may now request industrial desalinated water provision; Calama, Sierra Gorda and Antofagasta Norte are primary commercial targets.
- Quebrada Blanca benchmark: Cramsa now joins Teck’s 2018 approval as a watershed for Atacama mining-water investment, signalling Chile’s permitting backlog may be opening.
More: Chile news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Chile largest desalination plant approved on May 4, 2026?
The Comisión de Evaluación Ambiental for the Antofagasta Region unanimously approved on Monday, May 4, 2026 the Aguas Marítimas project promoted by Cramsa Infraestructura SpA, with a 5 billion U.S. dollar investment. The plant will produce 700,000 cubic metres of desalinated water per day at full capacity, with 350,000 cubic metres per day initial capacity and 8,100 litres per second total intake. Located at Caleta Bolfín, 12 to 15 kilometres south of Antofagasta, it is the largest desalination plant in Chile and one of the largest in Latin America.
Why is the Cramsa approval considered a watershed for Chilean mining?
Per Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental records, Aguas Marítimas is the largest single project the agency has cleared since Quebrada Blanca of Teck in 2018, an 8-year gap on mega-investment approvals. The Atacama Desert produces around half of global copper output, and water scarcity has been the binding constraint on production expansion. The Asociación Chilena de Desalación catalogues 51 desalination projects nationally totalling 24.5 billion U.S. dollars, of which Cramsa alone represents roughly one-sixth.
When will the Aguas Marítimas plant begin operating?
Cramsa expects to begin operations during the first half of 2029, with construction scheduled to start in the first half of 2027 and conclude in the first half of 2032 per the Informe Consolidado de Evaluación. The 70-year operational life runs through the first half of 2099. The 8,500 jobs at peak construction will be deployed over a five-year build with 480 kilometres of conduit, 17 pumping stations and 350 kilometres of electrical transmission lines.
Which sectors will the Cramsa plant serve?
Aguas Marítimas will serve the communes of Antofagasta, Calama and Sierra Gorda for mining, agricultural, industrial and eventually human-consumption uses, distributed through licensed sanitation concessionaires. The conduit route will allow industries and mines along the line to request industrial desalinated water provision, with mining as the primary commercial target given Antofagasta’s copper concentration. The 700,000 cubic metres per day capacity at full build represents one of the largest single fresh-water sources ever brought online in northern Chile.
Updated: 2026-05-05T11:30:00Z by Rio Times Editorial Desk
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