EPA Announces $109 Million WIFIA Loan for Honolulu Seawater Desalination Plant Delivering 1.7 Million Gallons a Day
Honolulu is a city in Honolulu County, Hawaii (a consolidated city-county). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on October 16 a $109 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, which serves parts of Oahu, Hawaii. The loan will help the Board design and build a large-scale reverse osmosis seawater desalination plant that will provide 1.7 million gallons of water each day to island residents while decreasing pressure on groundwater aquifers.
According to the EPA, the financing supports the Board's Kalaeloa Seawater Desalination Facility Project, which also includes byproduct disposal facilities, a recycled water pipeline and transmission lines. The project will establish an alternative drinking water source and strengthen water resources in central Oahu for the more arid district the Board serves, west of Honolulu and Pearl Harbor.
EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Jess Kramer said communities across the country face water infrastructure challenges ranging from replacing old pipes and pumps to bringing new sources of water online, and that the agency is thrilled Honolulu is using the loan to create a reliable and renewable source of drinking water. Ernest Lau, manager and chief engineer of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, said the financing will assist in constructing the first seawater desalination facility for the island community.
The Board is making the loan a subordinate lien, ranking second to its senior lien bonds, and will defer principal payments during construction to reduce the impact on ratepayers, the EPA said. Up to $11 billion in WIFIA funding is available to water systems and another $3 billion to state infrastructure financing authorities, and the agency is currently accepting letters of interest. The WIFIA program was established by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 and is administered by the EPA.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：欧胡岛西南岸卡拉埃洛亚一带航拍，海水淡化厂将建于此区（资料图）。图片来源：Accipitre 摄，经 Wikimedia Commons，CC BY 4.0。Photo: Aerial view of the Kalaeloa area on Oahu's southwest coast, where the desalination facility will be built (file photo). Credit: Accipitre via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.
- 2026-10-17EPA Announces $109 Million WIFIA Loan for Honolulu Seawater Desalination Plant Delivering 1.7 Million Gallons a DayThis story
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