Kobelco Eco-Solutions Co. has completed a water purification plant to allow it to deliver clean water to residents of two Cambodian islands, a first by a Japanese firm in the Southeast Asian nation.

Soma Kobelco Water Supply Co., co-owned by Kobelco and local conglomerate Soma Group Co., set up the plant on the island of Koh Dach in the Mekong River, some 20 kilometers north of Phnom Penh, the country's capital.

The plant will purify river water to supply 1,800 cubic meters of clean water daily to the island and the adjacent island of Koh Oknha Tei, some 20,000 residents of which previously relied on untreated river water, according to the firm.

The plant is set to begin full operation by the end of the year after completing a trial period in November. Soma Kobelco has secured contracts from 1,000 of a possible 4,000 households and aims to seal contracts with the rest within three years to secure profitability, a Kobelco spokesman told NNA on Friday.

The joint venture plans to expand its business to other regions as it has obtained a 20-year exclusive license to deliver waterworks services in the capital and the neighboring province from the country's Ministry of Industry and Handicraft.

The Cambodian government is welcoming foreign investment, including from Japan, to improve water supplies and plans to provide water to everyone in the country by 2025.

Currently, just 50 percent of the population has access to clean water. (NNA/Kyodo)

==Kyodo

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