WATER BOARDS
Aligning bulk water strategy with scalable, defensible infrastructure.
Water boards are responsible for supplying bulk water to multiple municipalities, often across vast geographies, while managing variable source water, capital constraints, and shifting demand forecasts.
Kalabas provides a utility-scale treatment solution that delivers consistency, scalability, and predictability — without locking water boards into inflexible, long-horizon capital projects that may no longer align with demand by the time they are commissioned.
Utility-scale output
Modular units delivering regional-scale capacity without committing to monolithic civil builds.
Linear scalability
Add capacity incrementally, eliminating costly resizing or premature overbuild.
Accelerated rollout
Months to deployment, enabling faster regional capacity expansion.
Consistent output under variability
Maintains treatment capacity during storm events and severe water quality swings.
Modular redundancy
Independent units ensure continuity of supply and reduce system-wide risk.
The operating context water boards must manage
Bulk water infrastructure is traditionally delivered through large, centralised civil plants with long procurement and construction timelines. These projects require significant upfront capital and assume stable demand forecasts over decades — assumptions increasingly difficult to sustain.
The stranded asset risk
Fragmented infrastructure footprints, expanding service obligations, and pressure to extend supply to growth areas place additional strain on both capital planning and operational teams. The risk of stranded or oversized assets is real. Kalabas was designed to reduce that risk.
Utility-scale performance with modular flexibility
Kalabas occupies a space between traditional utility-scale civil plants and small package systems. It delivers municipal and regional-scale output through modular units that can be deployed, replicated, and expanded incrementally.
Per unit
16 MLD
Individual module output — exceeding typical conventional units of 8–10 MLD.
Hammanskraal
50 MLD
Multi-module deployment exceeding the original 42 MLD plant it replaced.
Maximum
100+ MLD
Utility-scale regional capacity through parallel module deployment.
"Modular does not mean small — Hammanskraal delivered 50 megalitres, exceeding the capacity of the original system it replaced."
Scaling supply without resizing risk
Rather than building for a projected peak decades in advance, Kalabas lets water boards scale capacity linearly as demand materialises. Additional modules can be deployed across a service area as needed — aligning capital expenditure with actual growth, protecting against over-investment, and improving long-term financial planning.
~10 mo
Deployment timeline
4–6 yr
Conventional equivalent
0.1–100+
MLD scalability range
Performance across variable source waters
Water boards frequently manage multiple and deteriorating source waters — particularly during storm events and high-rainfall seasons. Kalabas is designed to maintain performance under extreme variability.
NTU removal
98–99% removal efficiency through advanced DAF and continuous moving-bed sand filtration.
Water loss
Less than 5% water loss, maximising output from every megalitre abstracted.
Turbidity tolerance
Handles levels exceeding 400 NTU — even during periods where quality fluctuates by up to 1 000%.
Continuous operation
Automated backwashing occurs without downtime — no production interruption during filter maintenance.
Operational resilience and redundancy
Each Kalabas module operates independently. If one unit requires maintenance, others continue operating — eliminating single points of failure and supporting the reliability required for bulk supply operations.
Standardised modules also simplify operations: consistent maintenance procedures, standard spare parts, and easier staff training across the service area.
"Standardised modules across a service area mean consistent maintenance procedures, standard spare parts, and easier staff training — everywhere."
Lower lifecycle cost and tariff predictability
Kalabas reduces both capital and operating expenditure. Lower energy and chemical consumption, fewer equipment components, and the elimination of large dedicated sedimentation tanks improve cost efficiency across the lifecycle of the asset.
This naturally translates into more predictable operating costs and greater stability in bulk water tariffs — a direct benefit to the municipalities water boards serve.
Long-term support and local capability
With an expected lifespan of approximately 25 years and lifetime product support, Kalabas provides long-term infrastructure certainty. As a 100% South African engineered and manufactured solution, support is local, continuous, and aligned with domestic operational realities.