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Who wants to build the Inner Harbor desal plant?

Who wants to build the Inner Harbor desal plant?
Screenshot taken from the public comment portion of the Aug. 13, 2024 Corpus Christi City Council Meeting.

By Julia Strong

We have some chisme on the firms vying to build the first desalination plant in the Hillcrest neighborhood, the only historically Black neighborhood left in Corpus Christi.

The City of Corpus Christi is one of two entities seeking to build a seawater desalination plant in the Inner Harbor. The second entity is Corpus Christi Polymers, which is trying to build its own desalination plant to operate what could be the largest Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plant in the world. PET is a petrochemical product often used to manufacture single-use plastics.

The Port of Corpus Christi Authority is the third key player behind efforts to bring desalination to the Coastal Bend. Initially, the Port proposed to build two desalination plants: the Harbor Island plant in Port Aransas and the La Quinta plant in Ingleside.

The City of Corpus Christi plans on approving  the Inner Harbor project before a new city council is elected in November.

The City received three proposals from five firms. 

  1. Acciona and Mastec are working together under the name Corpus Christi Desal Partners. 
  2. CDM Smith and PLW Waterworks are working together under the name Corpus Christi Desal Team. 
  3. Kiewit is going at it alone. 

The firms will be interviewed, scored and chosen between Oct. 1 and Oct. 8.

Check out what we found on each applicant. 

Corpus Christi Desal Partners: Acciona

Acciona is a Spanish multinational conglomerate that develops and manages infrastructure and renewable energy projects. The company is a subsidiary of Acciona Energía.

Lawsuits involving Acciona:

Arrests involving Acciona:

Fines imposed on Acciona: 

Corpus Christi Desal Partners: MasTec

MasTec is based in Coral Gables, Florida, and was founded by the late Cuban exile Jorge Mas Canosa. MasTec is an engineering and construction company that provides infrastructure services for energy, utility and communications projects.

Lawsuits involving MasTec:

Arrests involving MasTec: 

Corpus Christi Desal Team: CDM Smith

CDM Smith is a privately owned global engineering and construction firm. CDM Smith provides project services in the water, environment, transportation, energy and facilities sectors. 

Lawsuits involving CDM Smith: 

Corpus Christi Desal Team: PLW Waterworks 

PLW Waterworks LLC is a joint venture between Ferrovial subsidiaries Webber and Cadagua. They specialize in water purification, treatment, reuse and desalination systems.

Worker deaths and accidents:

Kiewit

Kiewit is a construction and engineering organization that has projects ranging from boring tunnels to building bridges.

Worker deaths and accidents:

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