Alberta’s Stantec, a design and engineering firm, has been selected by water company Cadiz to oversee development and construction of the $800 million Mojave Groundwater Bank project in California’s Mojave Desert that will supply California and Arizona by pulling water from an ancient aquifer beneath the desert.
When finished, this will be the largest new water infrastructure project in the Southwest United States and will provide 2.5 million acre-feet of new water supply, one million acre-feed of underground storage capacity, and pipelines that span more than 350 miles between the Colorado River and California aqueducts.
As the owner’s engineer, Stantec will also assist in the selection of the contractor under a construction manager at risk model while leading the project’s engineering, procurement, and construction management process.
Cadiz is also partnering with the Lytton Rancheria tribe of California to construct, own, and operate the groundwater bank. It represents the first large-scale water infrastructure project off tribal lands in U.S. history, according to the firm. Per Indian Gaming, the Lytton Rancheria will invest $50 million in the project.
The project also secured a $175 million pledge from a lead investor, an unnamed publicly traded company focused on investing in water infrastructure projects, according to Water Finance & Management.
The project faces opposition, but the work is expected to begin this year, with initial water delivery expected by as early as 2026.
