Cadiz, California
GAZING out of a turboprop high above his company's main asset - 34,000 acres (13,760 ha) in the Mojave Desert with billions of gallons of fresh water locked deep below the sagebrush-dotted land - Scott Slater paints a lush picture that has enticed a hardy band of investors for a quarter-century.
Yes, Mr Slater admits, his company, Cadiz, has never earned a dime from water. And he freely concedes that it will take at least another US$200 million to dig dozens of wells, filter the water and then move it 43 miles (70 km) across the desert through a new pipeline before thirsty Southern Californians can drink a drop. But tapping cash, as opposed to actual water, has never been a problem...
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