The team behind the $222 million local currency financing of the New Tirupur Area Development Corporation’s (NTADC) water and wastewater projects is pushing ahead with a still more ambitious public-private partnership. It is currently in the process of appointing engineering consultants for a 300,000m3/d seawater reverse osmosis plant planned by the state of Tamil Nadu to serve the city of Chennai (formerly Madras). The project looks set to replace a similar proposal tendered by the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) last year. That proposal has since run into legal difficulties (see GWI, February 2004, p22) and the state of Tamil Nadu has backed the NTADC management to push ahead with an alternative. The state has set up the Tamil Nadu Water Investment Company Ltd (TWICL), a joint venture between it and development bank Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services (IL&FS) to develop a desalination plant for Chennai. TWICL is headed by Sameer Vyas, a veteran