A groundbreaking ceremony will be held Sunday at Bagram on a water project intended to bring jobs and money to Afghans and a new source of bottled water for coalition troops in Afghanistan.
According to officials from the Combined Forces Command-Afghanistan, a privately owned bottled water plant to be built on Bagram air base “will be the largest and most modern facility of its type” in the country. The 50,590-square-foot facility will be able to produce more than 65,000 gallons per day; later, an additional production line will be added to make ice.
“The bottled water plant will have a purchase contract with coalition forces to provide 100 percent of the bottled drinking water for coalition forces in Afghanistan,” the release read.
“Currently, all bottled water must be imported from other countries. The bottled water produced [at Bagram] will significantly reduce the cost of drinking water for coalition forces and benefit the Afghan economy.”
According to CFC-A estimates, the project will take about four months to complete, with $4.8 million in construction costs and $3 million in equipment costs. The plant will also create 60 permanent jobs, which developers intend to fill with Afghan citizens, officials said.