Egypt’s Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources will establish a massive water treatment plan in Iraq, which will purify and desalinate water in the Euphrates River, and help lift the burden of water shortage in three Iraqi governorates: al-Nasiriya, al-Diwaniyah, and Basra.

Last March, representatives from Egypt & Iraq signed a memorandum of understanding in the field of water resources, and formed a technical steering community in both nations’ governments. This latest decision came shortly after a delegation from Egypt’s Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources visited Iraq, and studied the feasibility of the new project.

The plant will be similar to Egypt’s Bahr el-Baqar Water Treatment Plant in Port Said, which broke three Guinness world records for being the largest water purification plant in the world with a daily capacity of 5.6 million cubic metres.