Citic Envirotech unit sinks S$25m into new HQ, research hub and production facility

CITIC Envirotech's subsidiary Memstar is investing S$25 million in a new international headquarters, a membrane research centre and a manufacturing facility.

The new plant, which is spread over 5,100 square metres, will double its production capacity of third-generation "Thermally Induced Phase Separation" (3G-TIPS) membranes to 10 million square metres a year, said the firm on Wednesday.

Singapore is its only production site for these high-tech membranes, though the firm also has manufacturing facilities in the Chinese cities of Sichuan, Jiangsu and Beijing.

The plant will be located next to the group's research and development centre, enabling the firm to quickly test and prototype research outcomes and accelerate the commercialisation of new technologies, it said.

In conjunction with the facility opening, Citic Envirotech also signed an agreement with global membrane technology firm Hydranautics to design, produce and sell containerised membrane systems.

The containerised membrane system is a complete ultra-filtration water treatment system used for water purification, wastewater recycling and pre-treatment of desalination . It uses the 3G-TIPS membranes, and is jointly developed by both firms.

A 40-foot container can house a treatment system with a capacity of up to 10,000 cubic metres a day, equivalent to the daily consumption level of 40,000 people.

It is a cost-effective alternative to conventional water plant construction as it greatly reduces the amount of civil work and on-site installation which can be costly, logistically difficult and time consuming, said Citic Envirotech chief executive Lin Yucheng.

"This new product is targeted at providing water treatment solutions to communities located in remote areas, such as those along the one-belt-one-road countries where Citic Envirotech is expanding its business presence," he said.