Solar Desalination Transforms Middle East Water Security
POWER & RENEWABLE ENERGY

Solar Desalination Transforms Middle East Water Security

As water scarcity intensifies in the Middle East, solar-powered desalination is emerging as a sustainable solution to meet rising demand. Traditional desalination methods, reliant on energy-intensive cogeneration, consume about 50% of primary energy in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and significantly contribute to carbon emissions. 

Solar-powered desalination offers a cleaner, cost-effective alternative. Saudi Arabia’s NEOM project, for example, is developing a fully solar-powered plant using Solar Dome technology, aiming to produce water at just $0.34 per cubic meter — far cheaper than conventional reverse osmosis. Similarly, solar-driven reverse osmosis can cut energy use by up to 75%. 

With global water demand projected to increase by 55% by 2050, Middle Eastern nations are accelerating renewable-powered water initiatives. Dubai is set to launch the world’s largest solar-powered desalination plant next year, producing 818,000 cubic meters of potable water daily with an $875 million investment. In Oman, TotalEnergies and Veolia plan a solar photovoltaic system for the Sharqiyah plant, serving 600,000 people. 

Despite challenges like high initial costs and the need for advanced storage systems, solar desalination is gaining traction. The Al Khafji plant in Saudi Arabia, commissioned in 2017, already produces 60,000 cubic meters of water daily. Public-private partnerships and technological innovations in AI and battery storage are further driving this shift, making solar desalination essential for sustainable water security in the region. 

(Mercom)       

As water scarcity intensifies in the Middle East, solar-powered desalination is emerging as a sustainable solution to meet rising demand. Traditional desalination methods, reliant on energy-intensive cogeneration, consume about 50% of primary energy in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and significantly contribute to carbon emissions. Solar-powered desalination offers a cleaner, cost-effective alternative. Saudi Arabia’s NEOM project, for example, is developing a fully solar-powered plant using Solar Dome technology, aiming to produce water at just $0.34 per cubic meter — far cheaper than conventional reverse osmosis. Similarly, solar-driven reverse osmosis can cut energy use by up to 75%. With global water demand projected to increase by 55% by 2050, Middle Eastern nations are accelerating renewable-powered water initiatives. Dubai is set to launch the world’s largest solar-powered desalination plant next year, producing 818,000 cubic meters of potable water daily with an $875 million investment. In Oman, TotalEnergies and Veolia plan a solar photovoltaic system for the Sharqiyah plant, serving 600,000 people. Despite challenges like high initial costs and the need for advanced storage systems, solar desalination is gaining traction. The Al Khafji plant in Saudi Arabia, commissioned in 2017, already produces 60,000 cubic meters of water daily. Public-private partnerships and technological innovations in AI and battery storage are further driving this shift, making solar desalination essential for sustainable water security in the region. (Mercom)       

Related Stories

Gold Stories

Next Story
Infrastructure Urban

Vedanta Metal Bazaar Expands to Global Markets

Vedanta Aluminium has expanded its digital e-commerce platform, Vedanta Metal Bazaar, to international markets, enabling overseas customers to order and purchase aluminium products online.The platform will now be available to buyers across Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas, providing a digital gateway for export transactions with 24x7 access.In FY26, Vedanta Metal Bazaar processed transactions worth nearly $4.1 billion, or over Rs 380 billion, and fulfilled more than 23,000 orders. The platform is also used regularly by more than 550 MSMEs in India alongside large OEM customers.The export ..

Next Story
Infrastructure Urban

Ramky Infrastructure Q1 FY27 Revenue Rises 24.3%

Ramky Infrastructure Limited reported a 24.3% year-on-year increase in consolidated revenue from operations to Rs 471.2 crore for Q1 FY27, compared with Rs 3.79 billion in the corresponding quarter of FY26.Standalone revenue from operations rose 27.5% YoY to Rs 4.51 billion from Rs 3.54 billion, while total standalone income increased 35% to Rs 5.32 billion.Consolidated profit before tax stood at Rs 540.9 million during the quarter. The company highlighted a sharp sequential improvement compared with a pre-exceptional loss of Rs 190.1 million in Q4 FY26.Two of the three projects awarded during..

Next Story
Technology

LTTS Launches AgenticIQ AI Platform for Engineering

L&T Technology Services (LTTS) has launched AgenticIQ, an end-to-end agentic AI platform designed for engineering and manufacturing organisations.The platform is aimed at helping enterprises move beyond isolated AI pilots by enabling autonomous, multi-agent workflows across engineering, product development, manufacturing, industrial operations and customer experience.AgenticIQ is built on LTTS’ Engineering Intelligence portfolio and converts existing engineering capabilities into specialised, reusable AI agents. Its planning-first architecture is embedded into engineering and production ..

Advertisement

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Get daily newsletters around different themes from Construction world.

STAY CONNECTED

Advertisement