The 5 West Nutrient Removal Plant (5W NRP) forms a critical component of Melbourne Water’s long-term strategy to modernise wastewater treatment infrastructure at the Western Treatment Plant. The facility replaces the ageing 55E Activated Sludge Plant and introduces advanced, energy-efficient nitrogen removal processes, significantly improving treatment performance while reducing environmental impact.
The plant has a treatment capacity of approximately 150 ML/day, supporting Melbourne’s future population growth and delivering enhanced nutrient reduction outcomes to protect Port Phillip Bay.
We were engaged by BMD Constructions to deliver key structural concrete elements of the 5W NRP, forming the core processing infrastructure of the facility. Our scope included the construction of multiple large-scale, reinforced concrete bioreactor and clarifier tanks, which are fundamental to the plant’s operational performance.
The works involved complex in-situ concrete construction, stringent tolerance requirements, and demanding water-tightness performance criteria, all undertaken within an operating treatment plant environment. We successfully delivered our scope in close coordination with BMD Constructions and Melbourne Water, contributing to the achievement of major project milestones.
Key aspects of delivery included:
- Construction of large, high-integrity wastewater treatment tanks to exacting specifications.
- Successful completion of hydrostatic and water-tightness testing, confirming structural and operational compliance.
- The precision in tank construction reflected a high degree of technical capability in reinforced concrete works, surge retention structures, and hydrostatic performance standards, all essential for long-term wastewater processing asset
- Effective integration with mechanical, electrical and process installation works undertaken by others.
- Maintenance of high safety, quality and environmental standards within a live, high-risk operational facility.
The 5W NRP works reinforced our proven capability within the wastewater and water treatment sectors, in further highlighting our demonstrated capability in:
- Complex reinforced concrete structures for water and wastewater infrastructure.
- Delivery of critical path civil works supporting advanced treatment technologies.
- Managing interfaces and sequencing within multi-discipline, major infrastructure projects.
- Engineered consistency by delivering watertight infrastructure at scale underlines our consistent application of quality controls and construction methodology.
Our contribution was essential to enabling commissioning and operational handover of the facility, underpinning Melbourne Water’s objectives for improved treatment efficiency, reduced energy consumption, and long-term asset resilience.
The completion of the 5 West Nutrient Removal Plant represents a major upgrade to Victoria’s wastewater treatment capability. Fitzgerald Constructions Australia’s delivery of the core concrete infrastructure provides a durable, high-performance foundation that will support Melbourne Water’s operations for decades.
5 West Nutrient Removal Plant Project has received the following awards:
- Infrastructure Project Innovation Award (Metro) at the 2025 Victorian Water Awards
- National Finalist for the Australian Water Awards, which will be announced at Ozwater 2026.
