Saudis building solar-powered desalination plant

Saudi Arabia produces about 18% of the world's desalinated water, using more than 28 desalination units, which cater to 70% of the country's drinking water requirements. These units, however, run on conventional fuels such as fuel oil, which, in addition to draining an expensive fuel, adds to the cost of water extracted from such units. On average, about 1.5 million barrels of oil per day are reportedly used in desalination plants.

Fluctuating oil prices also have a direct impact on the cost of water. The move to switch to solar energy to power desalination plants would not only save precious oil, but would allow the utilization of a natural clean energy source, which is available throughout the year.

As part of the "National Initiative To Desalinate Water Using Solar Energy," IBM Corporation and King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology have set up a Joint Center for Nanotechnology Research. The center has developed techniques and membranes for the application of solar power for water desalination. In a three-stage program spanning nine years, several solar-powered desalination plants are expected to be developed.

The first stage involves construction of a desalination plant capable of producing 30,000 cubic meters of water per day, and a reverse osmosis (RO) plant based on indigenous technology. The solar plant associated with the desalination unit will generate about 10 MW of power. The residents of Al-Khafji City, numbering about 100,000, will benefit from this phase, which was initiated at the beginning of 2010. The execution of this stage is expected to continue for three years.

The first stage will serve as a basis for the second, which involves construction of a 300,000-cubic-meter-per-day desalination plant, which is expected to span three years. The plant site is yet to be decided.

The third stage involves development of several desalination units across the country, based on the techniques of the first two stages.

The projects will be executed by an industrial consortium, under the purview of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of Saudi Arabia, and will be based on the Industrial National Strategy guidelines. Saudi Arabia receives 7,000 watts of sunshine per square meter on an average day of 12 hours. The initiative aims at reducing the cost of desalination to less than 40 U.S. cents per cubic meter as compared to current costs of 70 cents to $1.50 per cubic meter, using thermal energy and reverse osmosis processes for a 30,000-cubic-meter-per-day desalination plant.