HUBER supplies the machines for the mechanical treatment stage of the worlds’ largest wastewater treatment plant project

HUBER SE will supply the complete equipment for the mechanical pre-treatment stage and in this way contribute significantly to the future improvement of the country’s water shortage problems. In the future, the wastewater in the inlet area will be pre-treated by ten HUBER RakeMax® Multi-Rake Bar Screens for the removal of coarse material, 20 STEP SCREEN® Vertical SSV for the removal of fine material combined with a launder channel system with integrated screenings treatment system. Another eight COANDA Grit Washer RoSF 4 units will be used for the removal and treatment of grit, and six STEP SCREEN® Flexible SSF units will be installed to screen the return sludge.

WWTP Atotonilco is designed for the maximum flow of up to 50 m³ per second and will treat the wastewater of more than 12 million people. Right from the beginning, great importance was attached to the sustainability aspect in this project, which is co-financed by the Mexican government. The generated biogas will be used for energy recovery, the treated wastewater for the irrigation of 80,000 hectares of land. In the state of Hidalgo, most of the food for the inhabitants of Mexico City is grown. Up to now, untreated wastewater has been used to irrigate this agricultural land and increasingly caused hygiene and health problems.

The overall project, a role model for the whole world, has a total value of € 500 million and will provide 2,000 new jobs in Mexico. By 2020, the Mexican government wants to guarantee a 100 % treatment of the complete wastewater generated in Mexico City and therefore has another five projects in the planning stage.

Already in the tender phase the consortium of operators, Aguas Tratadas del Valle de Mexico (ATVM), attached great importance to the functionality of the complete solution, its economic efficiency as regards operating costs, and on the investment costs of the proposals submitted by the suppliers. In cooperation with our subsidiary in Chile and our representation Aguas Latinas in Mexico, we have developed a solution that stood out from those of our competitors as regards operating costs, involvement of specific local requirements, investment costs and product quality. Plant operation by the consortium has been fixed to 22 years. The first stage is planned to be completed and put into operation in the second quarter of 2012.

• Machines:
  - 10 x  HUBER Multi-Rake Bar Screen RakeMax®
  - 20 x  STEP SCREEN® Vertical SSV
  -   4 x  Wash Press WAP/L size 12 with launder channel
  -   2 x  Wash Press WAP/L size 6 with launder channel
  -   8 x  COANDA Grit Washer RoSF 4
  -   6 x  STEP SCREEN® Flexible SSF
• Max. flow rate: 50 m³/sec
• Irrigation of 80,000 hectares of land