Allison: RGV Desal will be largest water infrastructure project ever built in South Texas

HARLINGEN, Texas - Doug Allison, a board member and regulatory counsel for US Desalination, has given an in-depth interview about plans for the largest water infrastructure project ever built in South Texas. 

“We’re partnering with communities, agencies, and industry to ensure a reliable water future for generations to come,” Allison told Ron Whitlock Reports, following a news conference at the Hilton Garden Inn in Harlingen. 

Allison said US Desalination has partnered with IDE Assets to form RGV Desal, LLC.

“RGV Desal, LLC. represents the largest water infrastructure project ever built in South Texas. Our advanced desalination plant uses state-of-the-art reverse osmosis and energy recovery systems to efficiently transform seawater into fresh drinking water,” Allison said.

Allison said there would be a regional impact, with a reliable supply for municipalities, industry, and agriculture. He said the plan, to be built on South Padre Island, would use cutting-edge reverse osmosis technology. 

“By turning seawater into clean, reliable water, RGV Desal, LLC, will ensure water independence for families, farmers, and businesses across South Texas,” Allison said.

“RGV Desal, LLC, is a regional initiative (that aims to deliver) a drought-proof water supply for the Rio Grande Valley. Through advanced desalination, we convert seawater into clean, reliable water—supporting families, farms, and businesses across South Texas.”

Allison stressed there would be water independence, with a stable, drought-proof supply of water for decades ahead. He said the project would generate economic growth, thus supporting jobs and regional investment. And he said the project would be sustainable because it would harness renewable energy and advanced desalination technology.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

In this case, this desail project, we're talking about seawater.

SPEAKER_02 0:03

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 0:04

That's you know, like everyone says, that's more far more expensive than brackish water.

SPEAKER_02 0:09

It is more expensive to desalinate for two reasons, and really they're related reasons. Brackish water is lower in salinity, and it takes more electricity to remove higher salinity, the salinity in the more the salinity, the more the electrical cost. And there's a direct correlation between the um price of your finish water and the amount of electricity you use. In other words, the uh the price of electricity and the cost of electricity is an operational cost that's significant to the process. Okay? And so that absolutely is true.

SPEAKER_01 0:53

Have you selected the location where you want to build the plant?

SPEAKER_02 0:57

Yes, and that's really what was key to, in our mind, giving us permission to make the announcement. Once you have that location secured, and we do, and it is over on the island of South Padre Island, not in the city limits, uh, but not too far north of the city limits, over in the area where I think most anticipate that the new causeway will land. We have made that selection, we have that agreement signed. Uh we've been working with that family for quite a while now in a very constructive way. That's the Purnell family. They've just been fabulous to work with. We're excited to have the location. That also allows us, it's such a key component because you have to have the location before you can make the permit applications.

SPEAKER_01 1:40

How do we spell the name of that family?

SPEAKER_02 1:42

I think it's P-U-R-N-E-L-L. But let's double check.

SPEAKER_01 1:45

How big how big is the plant, like square footage?

SPEAKER_02 1:48

Yeah, you know, I don't know the square footage. I'm let me give you a few data points though for that. The Carlsbad facility, which makes 54 million gallons a day. California. Okay, is on six acres. Okay. But don't get me wrong, everybody's told me don't use that figure. And the reason they say that is because they went kind of vertical with it because it's on the California coastline and land's expensive. Okay? And so what we have contracted for is 30 acres. And it will be on the back side of the dune. It will be on the Laguna Madre side, but not using Laguna Madre water. Uh so it will be kind of well off of Highway 100, for lack of a better term, sort of like you see the convention center back away from Highway 100 there too, Ocean Boulevard, whatever you want to call it.

SPEAKER_01 2:38

What do you uh anticipate the output, how the production, how much can you produce?

SPEAKER_02 2:44

You know, in order to well, the production will be a function of really the marketplace. I think at first the production we'll plan for will be at least 30 million gallons a day. And every time we have the conversation with IDE or internally and talk about others' experience with building a facility like this, if you aim for 30, you end up at 50. Because once people understand it's coming, then the economic development and the demand for the water come. So I have an idea that when we cut the ribbon, that it'll be 50 million gallons a day, and then it is modular, meaning as demand grows and over the years you can increase the size of it. And it'll probably be permitted originally for 100 to 120 million gallons a day, so that we don't have to go back and repermit as demand increases. Who do you think your customers will be? I think that the most important customers, of course, are your residents, and those residents need it for their homes, those residents need it for their businesses because those residents are also businesses. I also think that there will be development at Port of Harlingen. Historically, I know they have turned people away because they did not have water. There will be development at Port of Brownsville. I know that they have turned people away because they have had no water. And so I think customers will be a real mix of you know residential, business, commercial development, economic development, and on the higher end, of course, we know what's happening over Port of Brownsville right now. I think that demand's gonna keep going up, and you're going to have some large uh volume water users where and we're completely supportive, for example, of Brownsville PUB and what they're doing and that brackish project, and all it's gonna take is one large water user to need all their water. And then what? So we think those and time will become some of our customers too.

SPEAKER_01 4:51

What is your time frame?

SPEAKER_02 4:53

Time frame, again, is probably market-driven in some ways. If we said, okay, full board, let's go today, you're still looking at three and a half or four years. Uh, if market conditions tolerate a slower pace, then maybe it's five years. I think it'll be driven by market conditions, and um I think that's probably the most important feature there.

SPEAKER_01 5:14

What is the estimated cost?

SPEAKER_02 5:17

Uh, a 50 million gallon uh per day production facility means you're going to be drawing in roughly a hundred million gallons, making fifty million gallons a day, and then the brine discharge will be 50 million gallons a day. That facility inside the fence line is going to be funded by private funds for our project and probably is a$1 billion project. Um how much help help have you had from the state? You know, at this point in time, on the one hand, we've had a tremendous of help amount of help from the state because they have certainly raised public awareness. They are certainly making uh dollars available, and that has certainly encouraged the market. At the same time, we're at a place right now where we've not made any applications for any of some of those funds that are publicly available. We intend to do that, and I think actually Judge Cortez, part of his challenge to us today when I heard him speak was to make sure we do our best to develop the project correctly so we can have the most affordable price on diesel water that you can have. And one of the ways to do that, and I hope I heard him right, much as he's challenging us, he also said he was willing to work with us. And the the message there is if we have lower cost money, if we have 2% money on loans, which is like what a lot of that water development or SWIFT funds are, if we have lower cost money, then you can keep the lower cost for your project. Uh so we look forward to that cooperation and thinks it's a vital part. I will tell you that in Israel, um government absolutely is involved in creating that network, that uh grid, so to speak, for water supply that they have in Israel that I think is very much similar to Senator Perry's and Senator Chewy Hinahos's vision that they've worked on for many years. Uh and so I I think that relationship with the state becomes very important.

SPEAKER_01 7:23

Tell us about your company. Is it a brand new company? When when did it start?

SPEAKER_02 7:29

I'd have to go look exactly, but probably about two and a half years ago we created it. And what we did is having done the work and gotten the education that I got on DSAL and the others who had a you know like experience with me in getting those those uh permits up in the Corpus Christi area, we recognize that the need was real. Uh we recognize that starting a company would be uh, you know, a niche that we could fill. And what I mean by that is there are other companies, I think the best is IDE, but there are other companies that certainly can do desalination facilities. There are engineering groups that know how to make the intakes and the discharges and do those structures, but there really isn't anybody else that had focused on permitting the way our group did and really learned those ropes within the confines and the regulations of the state of Texas. And there really was no group who was taking that knowledge and looking to team up with people who knew how to build them to make everything happen under one roof, so to speak.

SPEAKER_01 8:37

So thus far it's all private money.

SPEAKER_02 8:40

Yes, absolutely. So we started looking at possible locations about a year and a half ago. We really have run the gambit and pros and cons at probably most of the locations. But like anything, at the end of the day, it's it's where are you? Right? Because if you are too far from the water, your capex goes up, and that has an adverse, of course, consequence to your project and to the cost of water. And so the more we understood how important that infrastructure dollar amount is, the more it made sense to be close to the Gulf because you want that to be your feedstock. The um and when you're close to the Gulf, you hold down your infrastructure costs because your intake pipe and your discharge pipe are shorter, and those are big dollar structures, all right? So we definitely then we definitely then made the decision we wanted to be very close to the coast. The truth is IDE in Israel puts them right on the coast, and you know that's they're very sensitive to that feature of the project. And they're a partner in your deal. Pardon? They're our partner, yes, absolutely. Uh and it's IDE water assets, but there's actually multiple IDE companies. The parent company is in Israel. Um the um one of my partners, Sean Strawbridge, actually has made that trip over there probably two or three times to go see the facilities in Israel. And we are work very closely. Today's presenter for IDE was Mark Ellison, and he's sort of their local Texas guy. Uh he actually comes out of the Perry administration when Perry was governor, has a lot of background in economic development. Uh but the person who's sort of the tip of the spear for IDE in the United States is a lady named Lee Turenstein. And I talk with her, you know, weekly. Great lady. Um, and so you know, we've been working, we actually USDSAL came down here and initiated the effort to find a location, and we certainly had a good relationship with IDE, but it was probably about six months into our project where they said, we really want to be a part of that project with you guys. We want to come in with you, you know, not compete. And so we formed a you know joint venture, and that joint venture is RGV D South. Environmentally, the location also is equally important. So we get to hold down costs by being close to the Gulf, but you also get to make sure you have no adverse impact to any of the marine populations by being in a location where there is a tremendous amount of what I'm going to call available ambient water for mixing. Okay? And what that boils down to is most of the questions on environment come up on the discharge side on brine. How are you going to disperse the brine in order to make sure you do not have any adverse impact on marine populations? Period. The answer to that really is told to us best, I would say, by two different studies, one of them out of Australia. One of the authors on it is Nathan Knott, and I would think it's okay to say a personal friend of mine. I've worked so much with him at this time. Nathan Knott is also one of the people who did the peer overview, peer review when they rewrote the regulations for desalination permitting in California. Okay, so to say that he is well read and well published and well known in that world is a massive understatement. And he's one of the authors on a six-year study that was done for environmental impact in Australia. He's a marine ecologist, I think is what he calls himself. Um I don't know how come some of them are in the States we say marine biologists, but he says he's a marine ecologist. Um that paper out in Australia really gave us a tremendous amount of reassuring data in terms of how to safely and effectively manage your discharge in a way that it mixes immediately. And when it mixes immediately with ambient water, then all of a sudden in a very small space, you go from you know the discharge heavy brine is gonna be probably 70 ppt, really 68, but I round up, so there's a math reason I do that. Uh but you go from let's say 68 ppt back to ambient PPT, which is 35. So you're gonna go from 68 to 35 within probably 50 to 70 meters, and to be honest with you, you're gonna be back down to 45 ppt, which uh you know really has no environmental impacts either on species. But you go to about 45 ppt within probably, I don't know, 10 yards. I've actually we have the exact disbursement models, but I know the 50 and 70 meter boundary uh better just because that's actually what it says in the literature that's in the study for Australia. There's also a great study out of California. You can imagine they've studied, studied, and restudied uh the for to assure that there's no adverse impacts outside the mixing zone when you look at California and Carlsbad. And that it's just a good study there that came to that same conclusion. It the key to having a successful facility in terms of cost and in terms of its uh you know suitability for not having an adverse impact on marine populations. The key to that is quite frankly, location location, and that location needs to be where there's a lot of available water and a good reliable intake uh quality of water, and that means you normally stay away from areas with a lot of discharges in them, stay away from areas in the bay which are more of a confined space. You certainly don't want to be discharging into a confined space because then it won't disperse, okay? And so the location we picked had the advantages of that, and coupled with that, you have the advantage of the new causeway. If it goes in, it's a perfect vehicle for taking the pipe back over to the mainland. So we've been working very closely with Techstone, and do not get me wrong, if they lag behind, I always kind of say it in a choking way, because we know how to get the permits, which is what we brought to the table for IDE, and we know how to get across the Laguna Madruck properly, okay? And how to do those appropriate studies and to document it.

SPEAKER_00 15:31

Doug Allison, partner U.S. desalinization, who's bringing RGB desalination to the Rio Grande Valley, the plant to be located on South Padre Island. Why and when did you first begin working on RGB detail plant here for the Rio Grande Valley? You presented here today to the Cameron County Judge Cervino, now County Judge Cortez, Senator Shui, and Adam Hinahoja, and other elected officials and guests. When did you first make the decision to come to the Rio Grande Valley?

SPEAKER_02 16:00

You know, I think that probably the first decision was in the spring of 2024. Uh, we really didn't probably get going until about a year and a half ago, but it really goes back or stretches back as much as two years. And because of the work that I did in getting the permits for the Porto Corpus Christi, you start looking at, and I will tell you, I am an avid fisherman and scuba diver, and to be honest, that's part of probably why I got hired to do it, is because I think I did bring a tremendous amount of credibility to a genuine concern about doing it right. And as I got more and more into the project, and you learn that, of course, you get up to Houston, your rainfall is so much more than we get in Corpus, and you get down here in the valley, which of course is why they call this part of South Texas the Wild Horse Desert. So you get into the Wild Horse Desert, you start seeing what happened in Corpus Christi when they had their deepening and widening project for the ship channel, and how much more business, economic development that brought. It seemed to us that coming down here to Rio Gran Valley, where they do have a deepening and widening project for the for the ship channel, and where they were still in the Wild Horse Desert, it seemed like, along with the fact that they have a lot of acreage available for new business and development and growth, it seemed like the right place to come. So we did that, we peaked IDE's interest with the project, and then we made that joint venture.

SPEAKER_00 17:40

In that the uh Second Causeway, okay, the uh South Cog Island with the mainland was a big advantage to you because you were able to get the water off the island.

SPEAKER_02 17:53

Yes, it it really is what gave us uh a we let me say it this way, it really created powerful thinking about that being the right location. And don't get me wrong, with or without that causeway, like I said, we know how to get a pipe back across to the mainland, but yes, it's an extra feature, and the way I've kind of said it in a kind and joking and promoting way is if we can get a two-for-one on the bridge and a water transport system, I mean what a what a wise use of taxpayer money.

SPEAKER_00 18:35

So why did you pick the Rio Grande Valley in South Pine Island as opposed to the community where you reside in Corpus Christi, which has such a big uh water problem going on right now as we speak?

SPEAKER_02 18:46

And it's not a matter of picking the Rio Grande Valley over Corpus Christi. I'm neck deep in many of the water issues in Corpus. I'm extremely familiar and involved in different ways with some of those projects.

SPEAKER_00 18:58

How, in your opinion, was your presentation received here today, sir, at the Hilton Garden Inn Arlington Event Center?

SPEAKER_02 19:06

You know, I think that how a program is received is probably best described by saying who's in your audience. And my answer to that would be how thankful we are that Senator Chewy Hinahosa attended, uh, Senator Adam Hinajosa attended, County Judge Trevino attended, County Judge Cortez attended. Those are actually the pro, I would say, well, some of the maybe the most important people to bringing this project to reality. It is going to take a community and it is going to take leadership such as theirs, which they have already demonstrated in last session, their commitment to new water supply funding. And so I think the answer to your question and how was it received? You take those gentlemen and then you add North Alamo Water District being there, you add um East Rio Hondo Water District being there, uh, you add the other level of interest that we had from so many who were there, and I think the answer is we feel like it was well received.

SPEAKER_00 20:11

Well, with Senator Truyjina Hosa's uh work there at the legislature, there's a comp there's 70 million billion billion with a B, as you told the audience today, and then the pipeline to make sure this gets done and other kinds of projects in this one accomplish. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:32

ASAP. Yeah, the it well, the amount of money that has been made available through the state of Texas, the additional money that it looks like is coming through the state of Texas, uh, those things coupled with how water has become a priority. I think South Texas has become a priority. We think we are probably, don't want to step on any toes, but one of the best, if not the best, project uh that it makes sense for it to receive the funding and political support that I hope we get.

SPEAKER_00 21:09

How significant an impact will RGBD South be to the entire South Texas region as a whole?

SPEAKER_02 21:16

I think I think it is correctly characterized as a regional project. We have been focused, of course. I can again I kind of make it as a joke and apologize to the other counties that we started in Cameron, but we sort of did that because that's where the seawater is. Kind of an important ingredient to Seawater D South. Uh but of course we have been meeting also with several of the uh electeds in uh Mid Valley. We've also, of course, been meeting with the water districts over in Hidalgo County and other electeds in Hidalgo County, and obviously that's where the population is in those two counties in Cameron and Hidalgo. But we've also had outreach to Starr County and we've also had outreach to Willesee County. Um, so it it is a regional project. It it works because it's a regional project.

SPEAKER_00 22:08

Doug Allison, Hilden Garden Inn, Arrington Convention Center interview. Is your plan for water for the RGB D cell facility ultimately designed to provide water to Hidalgo County?

SPEAKER_02 22:20

Yes, it's absolutely designed to provide water not only to Cameron County but also Hidalgo. And if and as the demand comes to Willisie and Starr, we've already looked at multiple routes on how to get water to McAllen and Edinburgh and all places in between. Those multiple routes include, of course, the highway right-of-ways with TechStot. Senator Perry and Senator Chewy Hinahosa have been very active and vocal in their support that TechSot cooperate. And so we have actually had some of those meetings with TechSot already. That's a possible right-of-way route. I think most people are familiar that Brownsville PUB has a possible easement route, and they spent a substantial amount of money developing that route, and I'm sure utilizing it would be a good thing for all people interested in that. But we've also, and I've mentioned that we've been talking, of course, with North Alamo Water District and East Rio Hondo Water District. Both of those districts already have existing pipeline routes for water and easements, and really offer a great opportunity for us to collaborate with them, which we have been doing and will continue to do.

SPEAKER_00 23:41

Doug Allison, partner in the RGB DSAL project, will desalination water from your facility ultimately help save citrus, cotton, vegetables, other agricultural commodities grown here in the River Grand Valley, or will that water be too expensive? You would think that your partner coming out of Israel where it is being used for ag for my understanding. Could that be anticipated in the future here in the valley?

SPEAKER_02 24:07

You know, I think the agricultural community has a lot of interest in desal, probably for a couple of reasons. One, and I think you heard it in the presentation today, IDE does have experience with desalinating water, using it as potable and drinking water, and then setting up systems for reuse of that water for agricultural concerns. Whether or not that model works here, quite frankly, today, is probably beyond my pay grade, okay? Um, but I also there was a second point there, not sure what it was, and lost it in your question. Well, do you pick up on it, Steve? Uh no, I'm not sure you don't. Oh, I know what it was. And the second point to make that's incredibly important to the agricultural community is realizing that by using seawater as your water supply source, you are taking pressure off your rivers, you are taking pressure off your groundwater, which is historically what the agricultural community has relied on. And so even if it's not our water they're using, I have an idea they'll be very pleased that there's another water supply source that allows the communities and demand to be met without pumping groundwater, which is a finite resource.

SPEAKER_00 25:32

Well, if you meet the municipal needs and the medicinal water, you you'll utilize them all by the ag community. Correct? Yes. Does the sister plant, you've got an identical sister plant in Israel, that you're gonna pattern the one building being built on South Godry Island. Does the sister plant in Israel in that facility provide ag water with water in that in that can in that nation?

SPEAKER_02 25:57

In in Israel, we do refer to a plant that's being built right now as a sister plant. It is probably referred to that just generally because it is a hundred million gallon facility, which is our target for this facility. Um is not gonna be identical. Let me give you a little bit of knowledge here. It is always true that every DSOL facility has some unique features because the quality of your water at point of intake, the uh amount of salinity at your point of intake, and other features really shape exactly how you treat the water in order to get the exact finished water product, drinking water, that you want. So we refer to it as a sister plant. It is probably near identical or will be near identical, but it'll always have some unique features, and whether or not that one is used for ag is something that you should have asked or could have asked Mark Ellison, but I don't know. Anything else you'd like to say? Boy, I think we covered it pretty good.

SPEAKER_00 27:08

Amen. Amen to that. Doug Allison, Hilden Garden Inn, Arlington Convention Center, Ron Whitlock Reports, Ron Whitlock, and Steve Taylor, Rio Gran Guardian, International News Service. Thank you guys.