Bahrain27 October 20152 min read

GCC seawater desalination capacity to rise by 40pc

W ith the GCC states investing heavily in increasing potable water supply, the current seawater desalination capacity of approximately 4,000 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD) is set to increase to more than 5,500 MIGD, nearly 40 per cent, over the next five years, according t

Editorial Team Legacy

Published 27 October 2015, 8:00 · Updated 22:17

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GCC seawater desalination capacity to rise by 40pc

With the GCC states investing heavily in increasing potable water supply, the current seawater desalination capacity of approximately 4,000 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD) is set to increase to more than 5,500 MIGD, nearly 40 per cent, over the next five years, according to MEED Projects.

“Currently, the demand for potable water in the region is about 3,300MIGD. It’s expected to grow to about 5,200MIGD by 2020. While current reserve margins between supply and demand appear to be at comfortable levels, at country and local network levels the supply-demand gaps are much smaller. For instance, while Qatar and the UAE have enjoyed comfortable reserve margins in recent years, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait have faced real challenges meeting demand, especially during summer,” it said.

“Ageing plants also do not always operate at full design capacity, further reducing the theoretical total output,” it added.

Ed James, Director of Content and Analysis, MEED Projects, said: “Our data shows that over the last 10 years, the region has invested US$76 billion in standalone water projects. If we add the power component investment of these desalination facilities, that figure exceeds well over US$100 billion.”

“Going forward, we expect the largest investments to be made in Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Oman and Kuwait, which have the steepest short- term demand projections. The addition of more than 1,500MIGD of new capacity will likely require a similarly large amount of investment,” he elaborated.

A major driver of these investments will go towards developing less energy- intensive methods of desalinating water. “Reverse osmosis (RO) membrane technology is becoming increasingly prevalent in the region because it relies on a chemical rather than thermal solution to desalinating seawater. Not only does the technology save on power, but it means countries can also lower their potential carbon emissions,” he added.

GCC seawater desalination capacity to rise by 40pc

Editorial Team Legacy

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