In a landmark step forward for water security on the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis, the federal government has announced a highly successful outcome for the first well drilled under its ambitious national groundwater exploration initiative, bringing the country much closer to its goal of consistent 24-hour water service for all communities across St. Kitts.
Launched as a EC$28 million priority project by the government, the Groundwater Drilling Program is being executed by St. Kitts’ Water Services Department in partnership with Trinidad and Tobago-based Water and Oil Well Services and a team of specialized international technical experts. The initiative forms a core pillar of the administration’s broader strategy to expand potable water production and eliminate chronic service interruptions that have plagued parts of the island for decades.
Before drilling began at the Saddlers site, officials carried out extensive airborne geoscience mapping and detailed hydrogeological assessments across the island. These studies identified 17 high-potential locations for new groundwater extraction, with priority given to communities that have long faced unreliable, intermittent water access. Saddlers was selected as the first site for exploratory drilling out of these 17 candidates.
Drilling operations at Saddlers have now been fully completed. The well reaches a total depth of roughly 640 feet, with the water table struck at approximately 500 feet below ground. Currently, the project team is carrying out standardized safe-yield testing to measure how much water can be sustainably drawn from this new source over the long term, to avoid over-extraction and ensure long-term resilience.
Initial testing has already delivered extraordinary results: the new well produces roughly 175 US gallons of water every minute. Project Manager Joshua Ross called the Saddlers discovery “a very promising well,” emphasizing that this output represents an exceptional volume of fresh water from a single groundwater source. Once permanent pumping equipment is installed and final testing is wrapped up, crews will move forward to construct a dedicated pump house, install all required connecting infrastructure, and link the new water supply to St. Kitts’ existing distribution network.
For the Saddlers region and surrounding communities — including Harris’ Village, Lavington and Belle Vue — this additional supply is projected to dramatically improve water access. Officials also noted that the large output of the new well means excess capacity can be redirected to neighboring areas during periods of high demand or supply shortages, strengthening the entire local water network.
The scale of this breakthrough becomes even clearer when compared to the existing supply serving the Saddlers area: the current source only produces around 50 gallons per minute. The new well will add more than triple the existing volume to local supplies, drastically boosting the resilience of the area’s water system against droughts and peak demand.
Chief Water Engineer Landrith Isaac explained that the groundwater program is being implemented in tandem with other major national water infrastructure investments. That includes the Basseterre Desalination Plant, which was officially brought online in February 2026 and already adds 2 million gallons of potable water per day to the national supply.
According to Isaac, all these investments are coordinated as part of a unified national strategy to expand total water production, improve connectivity between separate regional water networks, and deliver a consistent, dependable supply to every community across St. Kitts. “Everything has to work together to ensure that everyone gets a 24-hour supply,” Isaac stated. Once all planned new groundwater wells are completed and integrated into the national system, officials project that St. Kitts will reach 99.9 percent island-wide coverage for consistent 24-hour water service.
Early evidence from other communities already demonstrates how new groundwater sources can transform water access. Isaac pointed to the Cayon well, which was commissioned in 2024. Before the new well came online, Cayon residents endured years of regular shortages and interruptions; since the well entered service, the community has enjoyed uninterrupted 24-hour water access. The government’s goal is to replicate this success across every underserved community through the ongoing drilling program.
With the first drilling phase at Saddlers successfully finished, the drilling rig has already been relocated to Newton Ground, where work on the program’s second well is already underway. As of the latest project update, drilling at Newton Ground has reached 108 feet, toward a target depth of 500 to 600 feet. Officials report that progress at the second site is moving faster than the first, thanks to lessons learned while navigating unexpected geological challenges during the Saddlers drilling.
In addition to Saddlers and Newton Ground, the government has identified 11 other priority sites for exploration across the island: Black Rocks, Parsons Ground, Tabernacle, Sandy Point, St. Paul’s, Brimstone Hill, Old Road, Molineaux, Stone Fort, Challengers and Cayon. The program is systematically prospecting for new groundwater sources to build out a robust, distributed network of supply across St. Kitts.
The full drilling program is expected to take approximately 18 months to complete, though timelines are adjusted to account for variable geological conditions at each site. Parallel to drilling operations, supporting infrastructure works — including new water pipelines, electrical connections, pump houses, and expanded storage capacity — are carried out as each well is completed. This phased approach allows new water sources to be connected to the public supply network as quickly and efficiently as possible.
The Government of St. Kitts and Nevis reaffirmed its long-term commitment to solving the islands’ decades-old water access challenges through sustained, targeted investment and a structured, multi-pronged strategy. The ultimate goal remains clear: to deliver reliable, sustainable, full-time 24-hour water service to every community across St. Kitts.