Taipei - Several Taiwan companies, eyeing the health benefits of deep-ocean water, plan to sell deep-sea water as drinking water, the Water Resources Agency (WRA) said on Wednesday.

"Several companies plan to sell the deep-sea water retrieved from Pacific Ocean as drinking water, and use it for aquaculture, the pharmaceutical industry and spas," Chen Shen-hsien said.

"Bottled deep-sea water will appear on the market in November. It will become a popular drink because deep-sea water is bacteria-free and is rich in minerals and nutrition," he said.

Deep-sea water refers to water 200m under the sea surface. Taiwan commands a unique geographical location for utilising deep-sea water because just 50km off Taiwan's east coast the seabed drops to a depth of four kilometres.

At least three companies have laid pipes to retrieve deep-sea water to sell it as bottled water after desalination.

One firm, the Pacific Marine Biotech Corporation, has laid two pipe which can retrieve 2 000 tons of water from a depth of 710m off Taiwan's east coast.

"We plan to start selling deep-sea water in 20-litre and 500ml bottles in November. The price will be higher than bottled water or mineral water because deep-sea water has more health benefits," the company's marketing manager Hung Yin-yin told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur.

Hung said deep-sea water can help boost the immune system, relieve stress and prevent cardio-vascular diseases.

"Those who have tasted deep-sea water said that there is a sweet taste in their throat after having drunk the water. You don't get that from drinking mineral water," she said.

The Taiwan Fertiliser Company plans to sell deep-sea water as bottled water and also to make cosmetics.

"Several foreign cosmetic companies, including Japan's Shu Uimura which has been purchased by L'Oreal of France, have asked to buy deep-sea water from us," Chung Chi-tung from the Taiwan Fertiliser Co told dpa. - Sapa-dpa