NI Water has completed a key stage of works at Dunore Point Water Treatment Works (WTW), upgrading the pump manifold tie-in for the low lift pumping station to strengthen resilience and deliver greater energy efficiency. The project forms part of the company’s wider work programme to optimise pumping infrastructure across Northern Ireland supported by funding from the Department for the Economy.
New manifold installed without disrupting service
Workers from Farrans Glanua JV recently completed a raw-water manifold inside an existing flowmeter chamber at the low-lift pumping station. The new pumping main and manifold configuration has been designed to allow uninterrupted supply to Dunore WTW throughout the installation and commissioning of the new pumps. The changeover to the new pumping arrangement will be phased to ensure a seamless transition between the existing and new infrastructure.
Aidan Doherty, project manager at Glanua, said the new manifold will allow the utility to bring high-efficiency pumps online in stages. The pump station remained in service during the entire installation and the timing of the works was coordinated to avoid other interruptions throughout the network.
The upgrade is part of a broader effort to modernize pumping infrastructure across the region. Funding comes from the Department for the Economy, which has supported the project as part of the wider work programme.
Backup plants kept taps running during work
Dunore Point supplies drinking water to a large swath of Northern Ireland, including parts of Belfast and surrounding towns. To prevent shortages while the manifold was installed, NI Water increased output from three other treatment plants—Dorisland, Castor Bay, and Drumaroad. These plants helped ensure customers continued to receive a reliable water supply.
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Eamon Tennyson, NI Water’s project manager, said extensive and proactive testing helped provide confidence in the robustness of the operational strategy. Reduced capacity at Dunore was fully offset by increased distribution outputs from Dorisland, Castor Bay and Drumaroad Water Treatment Plants.
John Murphy, utilities director at Farrans Construction, said: “We are pleased to have reached this important milestone on Dunore Point, working in partnership with our client NI Water. Maintaining water supply throughout the delivery of this project has been a priority and through collaboration and extensive planning this has been achieved.”
The next step will connect three of the new pumps to one of the manifolds, with that phase expected to be completed in Autumn.
Officials say the project will improve the region’s water network resilience and energy efficiency.
