KASremena DesalinationEng

Regional Study:
„Desalination as an alternative
to alleviate water scarcity and
a climate change adaptation
option in the MENA region“
In partnership with Regional Program

Energy Security and Climate Change
Middle East and North Africa of
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS – REMENA)
www.kas.de
Publisher: Content support:
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Eng. Ayisha Al-Hinaai
Regional Program Energy Security Eng. Riadh Dridi
and Climate Change Ms. Elsa Andrews
Middle East and North Africa (KAS – REMENA) Ms. Jackie Allison
2, Rue Honaine, Angle Av. 16 Novembre Eng. Georges Geha
Agdal – Rabat 10106
Morocco Design / Typesetting:
racken GmbH, Berlin
Tel: +212 5 37 67 04 13/14
Fax: +212 5 37 67 04 15
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.kas.de/remena
Editor-in-chief:
Daniela Diegelmann
Head of Regional Program Energy Security
and Climate Change
Middle East and North Africa (KAS – REMENA)
Project coordination and editing:

Dr. Franziska Fabritius
Author:
Dr. Jauad El Kharraz
Head of Research MEDRC Water Research
Tel: +968 24415529
MEDRC Water Research

P.O. Box 21, P.C. 133, Al Khuwair
Sultanate of Oman ISBN 978-3-95721-811-7
Web: www.medrc.org December 2020 (last update October 2020)
For ease of reading, this report does not exclusively use gender-neutral terminology.
However, the report’s text should always be considered to apply equally to all genders.
2
Content
Foreword4 Capacity building and technology innovation 93
Acknowledgements5 I. Capacity building efforts in the

MENA region 94
Abbreviations 5 II. Technology innovation perspectives 97
III. Recommendations to policy-makers
Introduction9 and investors of this sector 99
I. Rationale 10 Summary101
II. Water scarcity in the MENA region 13
III. Overview of desalination technologies 16 Conclusions & recommendations 104
State of the art of desalination References108

deployment in MENA 22
I. Desalination capacity in MENA 23

II. Zoom on some MENA countries 30
III. Renewable Desalination in MENA 53
IV. Case studies and innovative
projects from MENA 58
Desalination as a climate change

adaptation option 61
I. Desalination as adaptation option 62

II. Desalination in policies 64
III. Desalination for agriculture 67
IV. Public-private partnership (PPP) in
desalination projects 70
V. Desalination costing 73
Desalination impacts 80
I. Desalination and water security 81

II. Energy Requirements & Carbon
Fooprint of Current Systems 83
III. Environmental impact 86
IV. Legislation impact on desalination
industry and practices 91
3
Foreword
Foreword
Water - a vital and at the same time limited resource, access to solar and wind energy are the ideal
its availability worldwide continuously decreasing. producers of these energy carriers to store rene-
The ongoing climate change is aggravating this situ- wable energies which are volatile in their creation.
ation even further. In the MENA region, the decline Therefore, they need access to sufficient fresh
in the availability of drinking water is already having water, without causing a competition between the
a noticeable impact on the security of supply for population’s and the industry’s needs, by raising
the region’s population. This shortage of water re- the available amounts of drinking water through
sources can become an additional driver of friction, seawater desalination.
especially in an already conflict-prone region like
the Middle East. As a political foundation, the Konrad-Adenauer-
Stiftung (KAS) has a great interest in supporting
At present, the COVID-19 pandemic situation in research in this field. Through its Regional Pro-
particular impressively demonstrates how crucial gram Energy Security and Climate Change Middle
unrestricted access to water is not only for the supply East and North Africa (REMENA), based in Rabat,
of drinking water but also for the implementation of Morocco, KAS focuses, among others, on the pro-
hygiene measures to combat the risk of infection. motion of regional cooperation through concepts
and measures for resource security, especially water
A strong demographic growth is expected for the and energy, and in this way aims to contribute to
entire MENA region in the coming decades. As a conflict prevention in the region.
result, the demand for water will also increase in
the countries of the region. In order to meet the This publication was produced in cooperation with
needs of the populations despite the decline in MEDRC Water Research. KAS - REMENA would
natural resources, their states are intensively wor- especially like to thank Dr. Jauad El Kharraz (Head
king on alternative ways of reliably meeting water of Research, MEDRC Water Research) and his team
needs in the future. One of the most prominent for their intensive work on this joint project.
ones being seawater desalination.
The study provides an overview of the current state
While the desalination and treatment of seawater of research and the establishment and use of sea-
to produce drinking water has not been the focus of water desalination technologies in the MENA region.
discussion for many years, due to the high energy Selected country examples from the region are
input required, the increasing development of examined in more detail. Based on this review, the
renewable energy sources in the region has lead to study addresses the ecological and socio-economic
seawater desalination currently becoming a real and consequences of this new technology and delivers
bankable alternative. Most MENA countries have recommendations for political decision-makers.
wide access to seawater, as well as to sun and wind
as energy sources for a more CO2-neutral drinking We hope you will find the report an inspiring read.
water production.
Yours,
Besides the need to provide sufficient potable
water for a growing population, there is also an in- Daniela Diegelmann
creased demand on fresh water in agricultural and
industrial processes in the region. As the world is Head of Regional Program Energy Security and
turning towards Green Hydrogen and Power-to-X, Climate Change Middle East and North Africa
the MENA countries with their almost unlimited (KAS - REMENA)
4
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
This report has been prepared by Dr. Jauad El Kharraz at MEDRC with the support of Eng. Ayisha Al-Hinaai,
Eng. Riadh Dridi, Ms. Elsa Andrews, Ms. Jackie Allison, and Eng. Georges Geha.
This study was peer reviewed by three international experts. We would like to thank them for their
reviewing work.
We would like to thank KAS - REMENA for its kind financial support and collaboration.
Abbreviations
5+5 Western Mediterranean Countries

AAR Artificial aquifer recharge
AD Absorption desalination
AD Anno domini (B.C.: before the birth of Jesus Christ)
ADE Algerian Waters (National water and Sanitation Company)
ADIRA Autonomous Desalination System Concepts for Sea Water and Brackish Water in
Rural Areas with renewable energies (project)
AFED Arab Forum for Environment and Development
ASEZA Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority
AWC Arab Water Council
bn Billion
BMCE Banque Marocaine du Commerce Extérieur (Moroccan Bank for Foreign Commerce)
BOO Build-own-operate
BOT Build-operate-transfer
BOOT Build-own-operate-transfer
BST Bulk supply tariff
BW Brackish water
BWRO Brackish water reverse osmosis
CAPEX Capital expenditures (cost)
CDI Capacitive deionization
CIEMAT Research Centre for Energy, Environment and Technology (Spain)
CO2 Carbon dioxide
CSP Concentrated solar power
CTA Cellulose tri-acetate
DAF Dissolved air floatation
DB Design-build
DC Direct current
DBB Design-bid-build
DBO Design-build-operate
5
Abbreviations
DBOOT Design-build-own-operate-transfer
DEWA Dubai Electricity and Water Authority
DMF Dual media filtration
DMGF Dual media gravity filtration
DS Draw solution
EAD Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi
ED Electrodialysis
EDI Electro deionization
EDR Electrodialysis reversal
EMWIS Euro-Mediterranean Water Information System
EPC Engineering, Procurement and Construction
ERI Energy Recovery Inc.
EU European Union
FAO Food and Agriculture Organization (United Nations)
FO Forward Osmosis
GCC Gulf Cooperation Council
GDP Gross domestic product
GHG Greenhouse gas
GTZ German Technical Cooperation Agency (GIZ currently)
GWP Global Water Partnership
ha Hectare
HABs harmful algal blooms
HFF Hollow Fine Fiber
IBM International Business Machines Corporation (Company)
ICBA International Center for Biosaline Agriculture
IDA International Desalination Association
IEA International Energy Agency
INWEH International Network on Water, Environment and Health
IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
IRENA International Renewable Energy Agency
IsDB Islamic Development Bank
JSTOR Journal Storage
IWP Independent water projects
IWPP Independent water and power projects
JVA Jordan Valley Authority
KAC King Abdullah Canal
KACST King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology
KAS Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
KAUST King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
KSA Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
kW Kilowatt
kWh Kilowatt hour
kWh/m3 Kilowatt hour per cubic meter
kWp Kilowatt peak
L Litter
L/day Litres per day
M Million
MCM Million Cubic Meter
6
Abbreviations
MDC Microbial Desalination Cells

mg/L Milligram Per Litre
MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology
m3 Cubic meter
m3/y Cubic meter per year
MD Membrane distillation
MEDRC Middle East Desalination Research Center
MED Multi-effect distillation
MF Microfiltration
MoU Memorandum of understanding
MoWI Ministry of water and irrigation
MSF Multi-stage flash distillation
MSL Moisture sensitivity level
MVC Mechanical vapour compression
MW Megawatt
N/A Not applicable
NAMA Omani highest governmental entity in charge of delivering water services
NF Nanofiltration
NG Natural gas
NRW Non-revenue water
NTU Nephelometric Turbidity Unit
NWSAS North Western Sahara Aquifer System
OCP Morocco‘s Office Chérifien des phosphates
ONA Algerian National Sanitation Office
ONEE Moroccan National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water
O&M Operation and maintenance
OPEX Operating expenses (cost)
OPWP Oman Power and Water Procurement
OWD Offshore Water Desalination
OWS Oman Water Society
PPP Public Private Partnership
PRIMA Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area
PRO Pressure retarded osmosis
PV Photovoltaic
PWA Palestinian Water Authority
R&D Research & Development
RED Reverse electrodialysis
REMENA Regional Program Energy Security and Climate Change Middle East and North Africa
RO Reverse osmosis
MENA Middle East and North Africa
FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
GWI Global Water Intelligence
RE Renewable Energies
RFP Request for Proposal
RFQ Request for Quote
RO Reverse osmosis
SDG Sustainable development goals
SEAAL Algerian Society of Water and Sanitation
7
Abbreviations
SGSP Salinity-gradient solar ponds

SONEDE Tunisian National Water Supply Utility
SPVs Special purpose vehicles
SW Seawater
SWCC Saline Water Conversion Corporation
SWRO Seawater reverse osmosis
T&C Terms and Conditions
TDS Total Dissolved Solids
TRC The Research Council in Oman
TRL Technology Readiness Level
TVC Thermal vapour compression
TWW Treated waste water
UAE United Arab Emirates
UfM Union for the Mediterranean
UNU United Nations University
US United States
USAID United States Agency for International Development
USD United States Dollar
VC Vapour compression
WAJ Water Authority of Jordan
WFD Water framework directive
WHO World Health Organization
WWC World Water Council
8
Introduction
9
Introduction
I. Rationale
According to the World Water Council (WWC), while the dynamic socio-economic development of the
the world population tripled in the 20th century, region will also be affected negatively by climate
the use of renewable water resources grew six-fold change. By 2050, water scarcity could cost the
(WWC, 2000). Still, around one billion (bn) people MENA region a drop of between 6 % and 14 % of
do not have access to adequate water supply and GDP each year (World Bank, 2017).
that more than two billion lack access to proper
sanitation facilities. Within the next fifty years, the With 6.3 % of the world’s population having access
world population will increase by 40 to 50 %. This to merely 1 % of the world’s total water resources
growth - coupled with industrialisation and urba- (Abou-Elnaga & Aydin, 2018 and FAO, 2016), water
nisation as well as food production - will result scarcity in the MENA Region is one of the major
in an increasing demand for freshwater and will and most critical development challenges. This
subsequently have severe consequences for water challenge is expected to grow over time due to
environments. At the same time, climate change many pressing driving forces, including population
and some of its most pernicious effects such as and economic growth, tourism, food & energy
floods and droughts will likely exert additional demand, political and social conflicts and climate
pressures on already stressed water resources in change. Most of the MENA countries are already
many areas. living in conditions of absolute water scarcity. The
region is one of the most water-stressed areas of
Given the magnitude of challenges an increasing the world, with an average per capita of renewable
number of reports call for integrated approaches water resources of 351 m3/y in 2014, whereas
to water planning and management able to accom- water availability per person in other geographical
modate traditional and alternative water supply regions is about 7,000 m3/y. Twelve MENA count-
systems as well as introduce demand manage- ries are below the absolute water scarcity level of
ment measures capable of increasing efficien- 500 m3/y per capita. It is also worth noting that
cies and savings. While still far from achieving renewable water resources are unequally distribu-
significant results at the global level, integrated ted across the region as evidenced by the annual
approaches and especially demand management share per capita that varies between 5 m3/y in
have been partially successful in reducing water Kuwait and 2,802 m3/y in Mauritania (AWC, 2015).
demand and consumption in the developed world.
Concurrently, alternative resources, especially For dry regions like the MENA, desalination has
treated wastewater and desalination, are rapidly long been part of national water strategies. As a
gaining ascendancy in some regions of the world whole, the region accounts for almost the half of
for which more conventional options such as the world’s desalination capacity and is home to
dams or water transfers face rapidly increasing some of the largest desalination plants. Interest
economic and environmental costs and also social and investment in desalination are expanding
and political opposition. beyond this part of the world, however, driven
in part by water-scarcity concerns —14 % of the
In many respects the worsening water scarcity in world population is expected to live in water-
the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region scarce areas and will be facing a major challenge
has become an object-lesson in the water crisis of a widening gap in water supplies and demand
facing the whole world as climate change becomes by 2030, by which nearly half the global popula-
a reality. The increases in water requirements for tion could be facing water scarcity, with demand
10
Introduction
outstripping supply by 40 % (Ban Ki-Moon, 2013). climate change and may reduce tensions between
This is attributed to limited renewable water re- and within countries struggling over shared water
sources and anticipated high population growth. resources. About 80 % of the population in this re-
gion live within 100 Km from the sea (AFED, 2009).
In fact, climate change and poor water manage-
ment have been implicated as contributing causes Desalination is growing rapidly worldwide, but also
to both the Syrian and Yemeni civil wars. Unrest, presents essential drawbacks:
instability and conflict can all be triggered or
worsened by water scarcity. Besides being inef- › High financial costs and energy costs needed
ficiently managed, water is also distributed to transform seawater into potable water to
unevenly across the globe, making some regions the point that for some are a source of “mal-
significantly more stressed than others. The Middle adaptation” to climate induced water scarcity;
East will be one of the regions most affected by
water shortages in following years. According to › Environmental impacts from concentrate
an analysis by the World Resources Institute, 33 disposal;
countries will face extremely high water stress in
2040, of which a shocking number of 14 will be in › A complex, convoluted and time-consuming
the Middle East. In addition, water availability and project permitting process;
quality are threatened by pollution, the impacts of
climate change, population growth and increasing › Limited public understanding of the role, im-
consumption. portance, benefits and environmental challen-
ges of desalination;
Overcoming the already expected water deficit in
2025 will require an estimated 237 bn m3 to make › The fact that it is still virtually ignored in many
it necessary to augment supply through increased critical pieces of national legislations. Likewise,
dependency on desalination, increased water reuse the multiple dimensions of this resource (tech-
of adequately treated wastewater sources and the nical, social, environmental, geopolitical) tend
mining of the non-renewable groundwater. to be approached in isolation from each other.
Desalination is becoming increasingly important

as a solution to the water challenges and a serious Many water-stressed countries in MENA are in-
climate change adaptation option in the region, creasing their water supplies with desalination
and also an important strategic technology to to meet the needs of the continuous growth of
fulfill the sustainable development goals (SDGs), population and industrial, tourism and agriculture
mainly the SDG 6 (Ensure availability and sustai- developments. Desalinated water can no longer
nable management of water and sanitation for be considered a limited resource because some
all) and SDG6-a: “By 2030, expand international countries such as Qatar and Kuwait rely 100 % on
cooperation and capacity-building support to de- it for domestic and industrial use, whereas Saudi
veloping countries in water- and sanitation-related Arabia (KSA) reliance is nearly 60 % (GWI, 2018).
activities and programmes, including water harves- The reason behind these vast capacities in the
ting, desalination, water efficiency, wastewater region is the technological improvements which
treatment, recycling and reuse technologies”. led to a drop in the cost of desalination. Former
King of Saudi Arabia stated that: “Water security is
Desalination offers several advantages over other no less important than the national security” (King
water supply options because it taps a virtually in- Abdullah of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2011).
finite resource that is more immune to political or
social claims than conventional hydraulic works. Therefore, to ensure water security and face the
Moreover, desalinated seawater is insensitive to increasing water scarcity, the MENA region has
11
Introduction
not many options, and one of the most important The objectives of this study are to:
options is undoubtedly adopting sustainable de-
salination technologies. However, the separation › Give insight into the state of the art of desali-
of salts from seawater requires large amounts of nation in the MENA region as a valuable alter-
energy which, when produced from fossil fuels, native for water supply in front of an increasing
can increase environmental pollution and exacer- water scarcity exacerbated by climate change
bate the earth’s climate-related problems. There and economic and population growths;
is, therefore, a need to employ environmentally
friendly energy sources such as renewables to › Zoom on some countries with relevant desali-
desalinate seawater. nation projects;
Since the energy requirements in desalination › Discuss the significant challenges and gaps
processes play a decisive role, it appears attractive facing the further implementation of desali-
to consider renewable energies (RE), because it nation, the environmental impact, financial
offers a sustainable and secure way to desalinate model, CO2 footprint, the technology choice
water. There is a great potential to develop solar and the innovation potential;
desalination technologies especially in the MENA
region where the solar source is abundant and › Provide a state of the art of the deployment of
the installed photovoltaic (PV) costs are declining. renewable desalination in the MENA region;
However, several issues related to this technology
at large scale are yet to be solved out. › Discuss the potential use of renewable de-
salination and the most promising areas of
Policy makers in the MENA region need to consi- development;
der the different choices for desalination based on
locally available renewable energy sources. › Discuss the costing and financing of this tech-
nology;
MEDRC proposes to prepare a regional study co-
vering the whole MENA region on the deployment › Provide some success stories and case studies
of desalination as a solution to face water scarcity. from the region;
› Provide recommendations to policy makers

and investors of this sector.
12
Introduction
II. Water scarcity

in the MENA region
“Water is the driving force of all nature”, claimed expected to drop significantly in the next coming
Da Vinci. Water scarcity, which is the shortage in years to reach a worrying level. Populations are
water supply, is one of the biggest concerns in the consuming water faster than the usual hydraulic
MENA region, considered the most water scarce renewal cycle in addition to the pollution and con-
area of the world. Twelve of the world’s most water- tamination of water over the years. Moreover, be-
scarce countries are located in the MENA region. cause of the extensive pumping of fresh water for
This shortage is not only considered an environ- agriculture mainly in the Middle-Eastern coastal
mental challenge but also a significant socio- areas such as the Libyan coast as well as the Nile
political problem in these countries as it could Delta, the freshwater level is considerably reduced
lead, for instance, to an increase in migration on the surface and is being replaced by the sea
out of the region (Trumbull, 2010). For example, because of seawater intrusion (Mughram, 2008).
different countries in the region, such as Jordan
and Israel or even Lebanon and Syria, share some In response to increasing water scarcity, over
water resources which lie on their borders. Others the last 40 years desalination, has evolved into
entirely depend on resources controlled by their a viable alternative water supply. It allows us to
neighbouring countries which is the case of Pales- tap non-conventional water resources with great
tine and Israel (Mason, 2012). The trans-boundary potential to provide a sustainable, drought-proof
nature of the water resources in the Middle East water supply. Desalination provides only around
makes cooperative management of these resources 1 % of the world’s drinking water, but this per-
critical as they have the potential to induce econo- centage is growing year-on-year. An expected
mic and social development and reduce the risks significant increase in investment in the next years
of conflict. would double the capacity by 2030.
Many countries in the MENA region are depen- Across the MENA region, desalination is increa-
dent on water resources that lie beyond their singly being considered as a technical, supply-side
borders. For example, Syria, Jordan and Palestine solution that can meet current increasing water
rely on trans-boundary water resources. Palesti- demands and buffer against the negative impacts
ne is almost entirely dependent on water mainly of climate change on water resources. Despite
controlled by Israel. The trans-boundary nature being energy intensive technology, the Intergo-
of the water resources in the Middle East makes vernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) lists
cooperative management of these resources criti- desalination as an ‚adaptation option‘ which may
cal as they have the potential to induce economic be particularly important in arid and semiarid regi-
and social development and reduce the risks of ons such as the MENA region (Bates et al., 2008).
conflict.
While climate change is considered as a main
For decades, many solutions to this problem have driver of conflict in the MENA region, it cannot be
been brought up trying to find an effective and overlooked as a threat multiplier of conflict. The
sustainable way to provide freshwater. However, implications of water, energy and food insecu-
because of the rapid economic and demogra- rity along with subsequent social and economic
phical growth, renewable water resources are burdens indicate these issues are interlinked; and
13
Introduction
likely to be even more so in the future. But as the Therefore, an accident for instance at any Iranian
MENA region is one of the most varied economi- nuclear facility could bring “environmental catas
cally in the world − GDP per capita range from USD trophe” to the neighboring countries with conside-
1,000 in Yemen to more than USD 20,000 in the rable desalination capacities such as Saudi Arabia
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries − , there and UAE. Depending on the severity and circums-
could be enormous variations in the adaptation tances, such an event could not only affect interna-
capabilities to climate risks within the region tional trade, but it could also temporarily jeopardize
(Abouelnaga, 2019). In this regard, desalination the gulf’s capacity as a water source for the Gulf
could be considered as a climate change adapta- citizens. In addition, any terrorist attack or mal-
tion only in countries with higher GDP and where icious act on a major desalination plant would put
water security can justify investments in desalina- water security in the region in doubt. To not forget
tion technologies. In fact, GCC countries may have the drones attack on Saudi Arabia’s biggest Aramco
the financial capabilities needed for adaptation oil plant in September 2019 added urgency to the
measures, the rest of the region is more vulnerable kingdom’s push to shore up water supply as key
to risks. vulnerability. The country’s daily water consump-
tion exceeds its storage capacity, and millions of
The concept of water security has gained traction people could go thirsty if the sprawling desalination
in the global political agenda and garnered atten- plants on which the desert nation depends were
tion from national governments at the highest put out of action. Saudi authorities plan a building
level, specifically as a result of its relation to all spree of reservoirs to ensure security of supply as
forms of security including peace and state secu- well as manage periodic surges in demand. The
rity, but also for its implications for development government will seek bids in the first quarter to
issues (United Nations, 2013). The term was used install new water tanks at major cities, said Amer
by the Global Water Partnership (GWP) at the 2nd Al Rajiba, vice president for capacity planning and
World Water Forum in The Hague in 2000 under analysis at state-run Saudi Water Partnership Co.
the banner of ‘Water Security in the 21st Century’, The plan calls for a six-fold increase in storage
to describe a similarly integrative approach to capacity by 2022. Saudi Arabia’s reliance on desali-
water management. The term has since become nated water has concerned policy makers for years
increasingly used by academics and practitioners (Ratcliffe, 2019).
(Cook and Bakker, 2012).
On the other hand, climate change has been re-
Water insecurity means that levels of consumption cognized for its security implications (United Nati-
exceed levels of available water, renewable or else. ons Department of Public Information, 2011) with
A water-rich country that uses water haphazardly water being the medium through which climate
can be insecure. Hence, being water-scarce, as change will have the most direct consequences.
many countries in the MENA region are, does In similar way, water issues carry implications on
not make water insecurity necessarily inevitable human security issues: either as a trigger, a poten-
(Baconi, 2018). It illustrates the centrality of water tial target, a contributing factor or as contextual
for all forms of security, whether related to more information. Recognizing that water plays a role in
traditional forms of geo-political military security, security acknowledges that water is in itself a secu-
or newer ones such as sustainability, development rity risk , that addressing water insecurity could
and human security. The concept of water security act as a preventative measure in regional conflicts
has gained traction in the global political agenda and tensions, and that achieving water security
and garnered attention from national governments could contribute to achieving increased regional
at the highest level, specifically as a result of its peace and security in the long term (United Nations,
relation to all forms of security including peace 2013). In addition, water security is embedded in
and state security, but also for its implications for sustainable development goals (SDGs) and expli-
development issues (United Nations, 2013). citly in SDG6. Moreover, water scarcity and water
14
Introduction
insecurity have the potential to exacerbate the While these are of course relevant and legitimate
current problems and to increase instability in the concerns, other aspects of desalination remain
MENA region. much less explored: for instance its role in chan-
ging power relations around water; in introducing
Heightened geopolitical tensions in the Gulf region new geopolitical configurations with potential
have intensified concerns over the potential risk for both peace and conflict in areas such as the
to Saudi water supply for example. By dispersing Middle East (e. g. Red-Dead sea project and Gaza
storage and distribution facilities more widely Desalination Plant); in reframing the very notion of
around the country, the government would make scarcity creating “relative scarcities” among those
it harder for an adversary to paralyze the entire (i. e. farmers, the urban poor) that cannot afford
water system (Ratcliffe, 2019). To face such risks, the high costs of desalted water; in questioning
the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) work on a the nature of water (“produced” vs “naturally avai-
regional solution to water security. lable”) or in reinforcing the water- energy nexus in
sustainable ways.
For all these different natural and human reasons
behind water scarcity, a sustainable solution had In addition, we notice in Israel for example that the
to be adopted by the regional countries, and this intense capitalisation of the desalination projects
solution happened to be desalination for most of and the work done to justify privatisation and
them. profit making as a necessity (e. g., Feitelson and
Rosenthal, 2012) are indications of a shift in water
Proponents and critics of desalination have for the politics. Moreover, the long sought objective of
most part emphasised availability and costs appro- efficiency and savings in water use may become
aching desalination as a purely technical-economic compromised by an appeal to the endless supply
issue. However, the development of desalination of water coming from the oceans provided that the
is also impregnated with social, environmental and price constraint of desalted water can be brought
political and geopolitical factors. Such factors defy to manageable levels and the environmental im-
both the cornucopian view of desalination as the pact can be significantly reduced.
ultimate solution assuring reliable and sufficient
water supplies to future generations and helping Hence, one of the most effective solutions to water
the countries of the region ensuring their water scarcity is desalination. The MENA region is the
security, and also the more pessimistic view of world’s largest market for this technology. Indeed,
desalination shifting scarcity towards energy, ad- half of the world’s desalinated water is consumed
ding extra carbon footprints and polluting marine in countries there, and more than 350 million (M)
environments with the rejected brine. people survive thanks to this technology.
15
Introduction
III. Overview of
desalination technologies
The ocean makes up 70 % of the earth’s surface As of 2018, more than 100 Mm3 of desalinated wa-
and accounts for 96 % of the water on the planet. ter is produced per day, roughly 1 % of the world’s
The problem is, this water can’t be consumed. need. Saudi Arabia produces the most significant
It’s filled with salt. The desalination process is the share of desalinated water, about a fifth of the
large-scale efforts to remove salt or freshwater world total, followed by the US, the United Arab
from seawater trace back to the 1950s, and today Emirates (UAE), China, Spain and Kuwait. Because
almost 20 000 facilities producing almost 100 Mm3 Gulf countries use most of their limited ground-
of freshwater to sustain burgeoning populations water for agriculture, they depend heavily on
(GWI, 2018). desalination to supply populations and industries.
Governments and companies spend as much as
Desalination is nothing but a technical process to USD 14 bn a year to make the ocean and brackish
get fresh water from the salty water. Ever since water drinkable (Stanley, 2019).
desalination was initially invented in antiquity,
different technologies have been used. Back in The most reliable desalination processes that can
the 4th century BC, Aristotle, the Hellenic philoso- currently be exploited at the commercial scale and
pher, described a desalination technique by which that have been widely used to separate salts from
non-potable water evaporated and finally conden- ocean water are:
sed into a potable liquid. Likewise, Alexander of
Aphrodisias in the 200 AD described a technique › Thermal processes: like multi-stage flash
used by sailors, as follows: seawater was boiled to distillation (MSF), multi-effect distillation (MED),
produce steam, and that steam was then absorbed thermal vapour compression (TVC), or distil-
by sponges, thereby resulting in potable water lation processes such as mechanical vapour
(Kalogirou, 2005). 18th century sailors experimen- compression (MVC); and
ted with capturing this vapour in sponges to ease
their thirst on long journeys. Modern desalination › Membrane processes: reverse osmosis (RO)
began similarly: boiling seawater (by burning oil and electrodialysis (ED) processes. ED is mostly
or natural gas) and recovering droplets of fresh used for brackish water installations, while RO
water in a process known as thermal desalination. can be used for both, brackish and seawater
More energy-efficient technologies such as reverse (Koroneos et al. 2007).
osmosis (RO) − passing seawater through polyme-
ric membranes to remove salt and other impuri-
ties − have become more prevalent. It boomed and There are also other minor processes which are
flourished again during the mid-20th century and either limited by unit size or they are still under
became very popular throughout the world as the development at pilot scale among other limitati-
second generation of desalination technologies, ons, such as freezing desalination, humidification /
especially in the MENA region where the energy dehumidification, adsorption desalination (AD),
cost is relatively lower than in other parts of the membrane distillation (MD), capacitive deionisa-
world. tion (CDI), and electro deionisation (EDI).
16
Introduction
Depending on the desalination process in use, RO is a technology that is used to remove a vast
energy might be required either as heat, power or majority of contaminants from water by pushing
even a combination of both energy forms. Choice the water under pressure through a semi-perme-
of desalination process is dependent on many able membrane to overcome the natural osmotic
factors, but mainly its cost. pressure of saline water (Figure 1). In reverse-
osmosis desalination systems, seawater is pressu-
In the last 10 years, RO technology has come to rized using high-pressure pumps. The pressurized
dominate desalination markets, due mainly to re- water is forced through the membrane, producing
cent improvements in membrane technology and low pressure freshwater and high-pressure brine.
its low investment and total water costs achieved Energy-recovery devices have been developed to
by lowering the energy consumption to about re-capture some of the hydraulic energy of the
3 KWh/m3 (Ghaffour et al., 2013). high-pressure brine.
Figure 1: Reverse Osmosis (RO) process
Osmosis
Osmotic
Concentrated
pressure
solution
Water
(solvent) Reverse
osmosis
Semipermeable
Seawater
membrane
Fresh
water
Source: MEDRC training material
17
Introduction
RO membranes can be supplied in both flat sheet they are completely damaged. RO membranes are
and HFF (Hollow Fine Fiber) structural formats. a consumable, and represent a large part of the
The flat sheet RO membrane is composed of three O&M budget, the third section after energy and
layers. chemicals. According to the feed water source, on
seawater, and the pretreatment, RO membrane
RO membrane are typically thin film composite. expected life ranges from 5 to 8 years.
There is a nonwoven polyester support layer, a
polysulfone layer, and on top of the polyamide RO works by using a high-pressure pump to
barrier layer. However, RO membranes have a limi- increase the pressure on the salt side of the RO
ted life-cycle and are often disposed of in landfills. and force the water across the semi-permeable
Another type of RO membrane consisting of fine RO membrane, leaving almost all (around 95 % to
hollow fibres made of cellulose tri-acetate (CTA), a 99 %) of dissolved salts behind in the reject stream.
mix of Di and Triacetate cast on non-woven poly- The amount of pressure required depends on the
ester support is also used in seawater desalination salt concentration of the feed water. The more
application. concentrated the feed water, the more pressure is
required to overcome the osmotic pressure.
Membranes can usually operate well for a couple
of years but they will last up to five or more years Table 1 presents the most essential technologies in
under right conditions. The impacts caused by use today. The motive power in the phase-change
the disposal of thousands of tons per annum of or thermal processes is a thermal energy source,
RO membranes have grown dramatically around whereas in the membrane or single phase proces-
the world. Waste prevention should have a high ses, electricity is used. An exception is membrane
priority and take effect before the end-of-life distillation (MD), which is classified as a phase
phase of a product is reached. There are many change process but needs membranes to operate.
on-going research projects including in MEDRC to All processes presented in Table 1 require the che-
deal with this challenge and extend the life-cycle mical pretreatment of seawater to avoid foaming,
of RO membranes for other uses as an example, fouling, scaling and corrosion as well as chemical
but ending with the same disposal issue when post-treatment, mainly for disinfection.
Table 1: Commercially available desalination processes
Major processes Minor processes

Thermal: Freezing
› Multistage Flash Distillation (MSF) Membrane Distillation (MD)
› Multi Effect Distillation (MED) Solar Humidification
› Vapour Compression Distillation (VPC)
Membranes:
› Reverse Osmosis (RO)
› Electrodialysis (ED)
› Forward Osmosis (FO)*
› Nanofiltration (NF)
* FO needs another step for DS (distant selection) regeneration, e. g. heat.
18
Introduction
Figure 2: Reverse Osmosis (RO) system
Post treatment
Cleaning
in place
Pre-treated High pressure Reverse osmosis

water pump modules
Energy
recovery
device Brine discharge
Revers Osmosis
treatment phase
Source: MEDRC training material
Table 2: RO advantages and practical limitations
Advantages Practical limitations

› Suitable for desalinating is › Desalinated water quality ranges between
both seawater and saline groundwater 250 – 500 mg/L salinity (suitable for drinking
› Requires less energy than purposes)
the MSF, MED and VC technologies › Membrane replacement
› Lower investment and total water costs › High operating pressure (electrical energy)
than other technologies › Continuous membrane cleaning
› Limited recovery rate
› Essential extensive pretreatment and post-
treatment (chemical additives)
› Significant capital investments, and has
relatively high operational cost
› Brine disposal (environmental impact)
19
Introduction
The process diagram shown in Figure 2 corre- For the membrane technologies, pretreatments
sponds to a conventional RO treatment phase are necessary to protect the membranes by remo-
for Sea water. Figure 3 shows the RO Pilot Plant ving some contaminants and controlling microbial
at MEDRC facilities. It is producing up to 4 m3/h growth on the membrane (except in MD, where
of desalinated water, and it includes all compo- membranes are hydrophobic), as well as to facili-
nents of a commercial RO desalination plant. RO tate membrane operation. Suspended solids are
potential problems are mainly: scaling (accumu- removed by filtration, pH adjustments (lowering)
lation of salt particles on the desalination plant are made to protect the membrane and control
components), fouling (clogging of the membrane precipitation of salts; anti-scaling inhibitors are
pores and feed spacer by feed water suspended added to control calcium carbonates and sulfates.
substances and/or sticky polymeric precipitates) Iron, manganese and some organics cause fouling
and chemical attack (chemical destruction of the of membranes. A disinfectant is added to control
membrane surface). RO advantages and practical biofouling of the membrane. Disinfection can in-
limitations are listed in Table 2. volve chlorine species, ozone or UV light and other
Figure 3: MEDRC RO pilot plant (RO System – 2 stages)
Source: MEDRC
20
Introduction
agents. Marine organisms, algae and bacteria must In terms of energy consumption, RO demonstrated
be eliminated, and if chlorine is used, it should be in the last decade to be more energy efficient than
neutralised before contact with the membrane thermal desalination processes. Based on current
(Gilbert, 2019). processes, the share in the world desalination mar-
ket and their respective published specific energy
Post-treatment of the water produced is required consumptions, seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO)
in all technologies, especially in distillation pro- 60 % at 3.5 kWh/m3 and thermally driven processes
cesses that require mineralisation of the distilled 40 % at 17 kWh/m3 (Shahzad et al., 2019).
water produced. The post-treatment aims to sta-
bilize the produced water and make it compatible This report is meant to cover the state of the art of
with the distribution network. Adjustment of pH to desalination technologies in the MENA countries,
approximately 8 is required. Carbonation or use of and highlight its role as a climate change adapta-
other chemicals such as lime may be applied, and tion option, and also its strenghts and constraints.
blending with some source water may be done to We will also cover the advances in the technology
increase alkalinity and TDS and stabilise the water. and the efforts to make it more environment
Addition of corrosion inhibitors like polyphosphates friendly and the aspects related to water policy
may be necessary (Dariva and Galio, 2014). and legislation. Finally, we will also talk about the
capacity building efforts in this field and the need
Post disinfection is also necessary to control micro- of localising the technology in the region.
organisms during distribution, as well as to eliminate
pathogens from the blending process. Degasifica-
tion may also be necessary. Many systems blend
back a portion of the source water with the desali-
nated water for mineralisation.
21
State of the art
of desalination
deployment in MENA
State of the art of desalination deployment in MENA
I. Desalination capacity
in MENA
The MENA region becomes nowadays so depen- water from desalination (D’Souza, 2017), mainly
dent on desalination technology for sustainable from five seawater desalination facilities: Ashkelon,
water supply that thousands of additional techni- Palmahim, Hadera, Sorek, and Ashdod and the rest
cal experts of various professional levels will be comes from other facilities for desalinating salty
needed to service the desalination industry. groundwater, mostly in the Arava (Avgar, 2018).
These countries also have hardly any groundwater
The Middle East has been a leader in desalination or fresh water sources, so desalination is a case of
so far. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, innovation by necessity. These countries make up
Kuwait, and Israel rely heavily on desalination as a the 1 % of the world currently relying on desalination
source for clean water. Israel gets 60 % of domestic to meet water needs. However, the UN predicts
Figure 4: Cumulative contracted capacities globally and per region since 1944 (m3/d)
Capacity (Mm3)
100
80
60
40
20
1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
World MENA Gulf
Source: Desal Data/GWI
23
that by 2025, 14 % of the world will rely on desali- m3/d and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with 10
nation to meet water needs (Werft, 2016). 721,554 m3/d (GWI, 2018).
Desalination is becoming increasingly important 2019 has seen the desalination market return in
as a solution to the region’s water problem. Many force after a relatively weak 2018. 4 million m3/d
water-stressed countries in MENA are increasing in new capacity was contracted in the first half of
their water supplies with desalination to meet the 2019 alone. This increase was primarily driven by
needs of the continuous growth of population and very large awards in the GCC, with just four inde
industrial, tourism and agriculture developments. pendent water projects (IWPs) making up almost
Desalinated water can no longer be considered 60 % of this top-level figure: Taweelah (909 000
a limited resource because some countries such m3/d) and Umm al Quwain (680,000 m3/d) in the
as Qatar and Kuwait rely 100 % on it for domestic UAE, and Rabigh 3 (600,000 m3/d) and Shuqaiq 3
and industrial use, whereas Saudi Arabia reliance (380,000 m3/d) in Saudi Arabia. The wider MENA
is nearly 60 % (Ghaffour, 2009). region (excluding the Gulf) is also bouncing back
after a quit 2018: its 226,000 m3/d total contracted
The reason behind these huge capacities in the re- capacity in the first half of 2019 is a 32 % increase
gion is the technological improvements which led on its 2018 year-end total. While political uncer-
to a drop in the cost of desalination. Currently, the tainty in Algeria has stalled two 300,000 m3/d
global market is led by Saudi Arabia with a total SWRO projects under procurement, water scarcity
cumulative capacity of 15,378,543 m3/d followed in Morocco and Tunisia is driving a healthy project
by the United States (US) producing 11,815,772 pipeline in North Africa (GWI, 2019).
Figure 5: Symbol map of the MENA desalination capacities and the technology used
Indicators (in per cent)

Saudi Arabia: RO (51.5), MSF (38.2), MED (8.3), ED (0,6), Others (2.0) Bahrain: RO (41.6), MSF (26.8), MED (29.5), ED (2.1)
UAE: RO (22.8), MSF (61.6), MED (15.6) Kuwait: RO (29.7), MSF (57,7), MED (12.6)
Oman: RO (75.7), MSF (19.4), MED (4.9) Egypt: RO (91.8), MSF (2.2), MED (3.6), ED (2.4)
Quatar: RO (22.4), MSF (63.8), MED (12.5), Others (1.3) Algeria: RO (91.1), MSF (6.0), MED (2.0), ED (0.9)
Technologies Scale
RO MSF MED Electrodialysis Other 1,000,000 m³/day
24
Figures 4 and 5 show consecutively the cumulative at Jeddah 3 (commissioned 1979) in 2015,191,000
capacities globally and per region (MENA and Gulf) m3/d at Al Ghubrah, Oman and 227,100 m3/d at
since 1944 and the mapping of the capacities and Jeddah 4 in 2019 took 2 % of the world’s running
technologies used. The bigger the circle, the bigger thermal desalination capacity offline. These are
the desalination capacity. The data used were pro- likely to be joined by thermal units in Abu Dhabi,
vided by the Global Water Intelligence (GWI) desal as the UAE’s department of Energy plans to build
data. large-scale SWRO plants to replace thermal pro-
duction capacity (GWI, 2019).
Subsequently, we note that the MENA region occu-
pies nearly half of the global desalination activity The above graphs and the map support the idea
in 2017 with a cumulative total contracted capacity that the MENA region is responsible for a big part
equal to 48,972,069 m3/d and a global cumulative of the desalination activities in the world regard-
contracted capacity of 100,949,442 m3/d. There- less of the technology used. Nevertheless, the
fore, desalination is an indispensable and inevita- repartition of these activities remains unequal
ble source of fresh water in the region, given those between the countries. A big gap is observed
huge quantities of fresh water produced daily. between the capacities of most Gulf countries
and that of Yemen or Jordan. This disproportion
According to Desal Data (GWI, 2018), more than is mainly due to the big capital costs required to
90 % of all desalinated water in the MENA comes build desalination plants as well as the essential
from Membrane desalination (Reverse Osmosis). future operation and maintenance (O&M) costs
Furthermore, the desalination plants in countries which will be discussed later in this report.
such as Syria, Morocco, Republic of Djibouti and
Palestine completely depend on this technology. Tables 3 and 4 show the biggest desalination
Other technologies such as MSF desalination and plants (both in operation and planned) in MENA.
MED account for less than 10 % of the production The tables also give information on their capaci-
in the MENA region. ties, the type of technology, the type of feedwater,
operation day and also the cost per m3 or the
Membrane desalination technologies have been estimated project cost, as the cost per m3 is not
dominant over thermal for some years now. One always indicated. The largest plants are built in
of the few thermal awards is a 62,500 m3/d multi- Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The lowest cost per m3
effect distillation (MED) unit furnished by Veolia corresponds to Magtaa plant in Algeria with USD
for the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. The 0.56 per m3 and Al Shuaiba 3 plant in Saudi Arabia
world’s operating thermal capacity is declining. The with USD 0.57 cost per m3. As shown in tables, all
decommissioning of 90,840 m3/d of MSF capacity the newest plants are RO technology based.
Table 3: The largest desalination plants (in operation) in the MENA region: The KSA and the UAE
Location Capacity (m3/d) Process Feedwater Operation year Cost (USD)

Al Jubail, KSA 800,000 Thermal (MED) Seawater 2007 0.827/m³
Al Shuaiba 3, KSA 880,000 Thermal (MSF) Seawater 2009 0.57/m³
Jebel Ali M Plant, 636,440 Thermal (MSF) Seawater 2013 EPC cost: USD
UAE 1.07 bn
Soreq, Israel 540,000 RO Seawater 2013 0.585/m³
25
Table 3 (continued): The largest desalination plants (in operation) in the MENA region: The KSA and the UAE

Magtaa, Algeria 500,000 RO Seawater 2014 0.56/m³
Ras Al-Khair, 1,025,000 RO N/A 2016 -

KSA
Ras Al-Khair, 728,000 Thermal (MSF) Seawater 2016 EPC cost: USD
KSA 4.2 bn
Yanbu 3, KSA 550,000 Thermal (MSF) Seawater 2017 EPC cost: USD
1 bn
Table 4: The largest desalination plants (planned) in the MENA region: The KSA and the UAE

Umm al Qu- 681,900 RO Seawater 2020 EPC cost: USD
wain IWP, UAE 250M
Rabigh 3 IWP, 600,000 RO Seawater 2021 -
KSA
Khobar 2 600,000 RO Seawater 2021 EPC cost: USD
replacement 650M
SWRO, KSA
Taweelah IWP, 909,200 RO Seawater 2022 EPC cost: USD
UAE 840.5M
Rabigh, KSA 600,000 RO Seawater 2022 -
Jubail 3b IWP, 600,000 RO Seawater 2022 EPC cost: USD:

KSA 3 bn
Jubail 3a IWP, 600.000 RO Seawater 2022 EPC cost: USD:
KSA 3 bn
Shoaiba 6 IWP, 600,000 RO Seawater 2029 -
KSA
Hassyan 545,520 RO Seawater Planned -
SWRO, UAE
Haradh BWRO, 800,000 RO Brackish water Planned -
KSA or inland water
On the other hand, the International Energy Agency electricity generation alone currently requires bur-
(IEA) has estimated energy requirements of desa- ning approximately 1.5 million barrels per day of
lination in the MENA region, ranging from a low of crude equivalent. The trend is similar for other GCC
2.4 % in Algeria to a high of 23.9 % in UAE or even countries as well as in the North African countries,
30 % in Bahrain of total energy use. In the world’s to whose water supply portfolios desalination con-
largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, desalination and tributes a significant share (Asaba, 2019).
26
Figure 6: Jebel Ali MSF plant, UAE, power and water cogeneration plant, positively buoyant discharge
Source: Google Earth
A Gulf region (GCC) C The use of desalinated water
In GCC, MSF is still dominating the market in UAE, In the MENA region, desalination is a solution for
Qatar and Kuwait, while RO started dominating in water scarcity allowing the production of reasona-
Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Bahrain (Figure 7) and ble quantities of freshwater to meet the increa-
several thermal plants have been shut down to be sing water demand. The main sector of use is the
replaced later by RO plants (e. g. Ghubrah Plant domestic (municipal) mainly in GCC where there
in Muscat, Oman in 2018). The trend will likely are no other options than desalinated water, and
confirm the dominance of RO in GCC as many we can witness cities fully relying on desalinated
planned desalination projects are almost RO. water such as: Muscat, Doha or Dubai. Figure 9
shows the total desalination capacity by customer
type (sector) in the MENA region. Almost 3 fourths
B North African countries are for domestic use, while the rest is distributed
mainly on industrial use, followed by touristic use,
Figure 8 shows that in North African countries RO power stations, military and agriculture.
technology is dominating capacities in all North
African countries except in Libya, where MED tech- Almost in all countries, the maximum usage of
nology is still the primary technology followed by desalinated water is used in municipalities as
MSF and RO technologies. Algeria has the largest drinking water, followed by industries and power
capacity followed by Egypt. stations (cooling).
27
Figure 7: Desalination technologies distribution (Capacities in Mm3/d) in GCC
6,02
5,79
6
4
3,12
3
2,06
1,73
2 1,43
1,2
0,92 1,06
1 0,70 0,62
0,37 0,32 0,48
0,24 0,33
0,08 0,01 0,15 0,03 0,01
Bahrain Kuwait Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia UEA
MSF RO NF MED Other / Unknown
Figure 8: Desalination technologies distribution (Capacities in Mm3/d) in North African countries
2,20
2,0
1,5
1,22
1,0
0,5
0,26 0,30
0,20
0,09 0,07 0,07
0,004 0,0001 0,04 0,0005
0,001 0,005 0,0006
Algeria Egypt Jordan Libya Tunisia
MSF RO NF MED Other / Unknown
28
Figure 9: Total capacity by customer type in the MENA region
Water injection Demonstration

Tourist facilities
Discharge
Process
Power stations
General industry
Irrigation
Military
Municipal
29
II. Zoom on some

MENA countries
A Desalination in Tunisia › Increase the rate of waste water reuse;
Water resources in Tunisia are inventoried and › Considering artificial aquifer recharge (AAR)
well identified: 4,840 Mm3 (Surface water: by treated waste water (TWW) in some water
2,700 Mm3 – Groundwater: 2,140 Mm3). In 2014, aquifers;
the water availability per capita/year was 440 m3
(the minimum considered by United Nations is › Support wastewater recycling in the industry
1,000 m3). In addition, in the same year, about sector;
93 % of resources were mobilised.
› Development of brackish (BW) and seawater
When it comes to the development of non-con- (SW) desalination program.
ventional water resources in Tunisia, the main
undertaken measures are: The production capacity of desalination plants in
June 2016 is about 200,000 m3/d, and the number
of desalination plants by the end of 2016, was 110.
Figure 10: Desalinated water in Tunisia by Desalination is playing an increasing role in water
desalination processes (in %) supply mainly in the South of Tunisia. Figure 10
shows desalination technologies used in Tunisia.
1 Desalination plants in Tunisia

2 7,2
Table 5 shows some of the desalination plants lo-
4,8 cations and characteristics (capacities, conversion
rate, salinity, date of operation, etc. These plants
are operated by SONEDE (National Water Distribu-
tion Utility).
To be noted that Bengardene desalination plant

is a photovoltaic-powered RO desalination plant
with a production capacity of 1,800 m3/d, and it is
associated with an evaporation pond of 11.9 ha.
86 Apart from the water supply by desalination, Tuni-

sia has adopted desalination programs to improve
water quality (brackish water desalination). Lower
salinity is registered in the north while the highest
RO ED MSF Other salinity is registered in the middle and south of
Tunisia. Those programs have been carried out in
two phases:
Source: SONEDE
30
Table 5: Some Tunisian desalination plants with its capacities, year of operation, and characteristics of feed water
Plant Gabes Djerba* Zarzis Kerkennah Bengardene Total
Nominal 30,000 17,000 – 15,000 3,300 1,800 67,100 –

Capacity (m3) 50,000 100,100
Maximal 34,000 17,000 – 6 15,000 3,300 2,000 71,300 –

Capacity (m3) 7,000 121,300
Conversion 74 % 75 % 75 % 75 % 70 % 75 %

rate
Raw water 3.2 g/L 6 g/L 6 g/L 3.7 g/L 14 g/L -

salinity
Osmosis water 300 mg/L 300 mg/L 500 mg/L 300 mg/L 300 mg/L -
salinity
Lines number 4 7 3 4 3 21
Modules 1,584 756 + 162 756 144 100 3,502

number
Operation/ 1995 1999 – 2000 1983 2013 -

Online date 2007 –
2018
* Djerba first plant was put online on 1999 with a capacity of 12,000 m³/d, the second one was put in operation on 2007 with a capacity
of 5,000 m³/d, and the third one on 2018 with a capacity of 50,000 m³/d.
› The first one refers to regions with population Another example of Tunisian desalination plants is
over 4,000 inhabitants and where water salini- the Desalination plant of Djerba. Hereafter some
ty is greater than 2.0 g/L. Operation date end characteristics:
2016 and first 2017. Table 6a shows correspon-
ding desalination plants. › Contracting method: Turn-key;
› The second phase refers to regions where wa- › Seawater intake, desalination plant and brine
ter salinity is between 1.5 g/L and 2.0 g/L and discharge;
population over 4,000 inhabitants. Achieved
study, preparation of tendering procedure is in › Desalination capacity of 50,000 m3/d expanda-
progress and some drilling startup works. Tab- ble to 75,000 m3/d using RO technology;
le 6b shows corresponding desalination plants.
› Storage of produced water after being mixed
with brackish water;
31
› Deferrisation of the mixed water; From year 2025 a new deficit is expected that
should be balanced by the addition of 100,000 m3/d
› Connection of the desalination plant to the dis- issued from a new seawater desalination plant,
tribution network; the present Ksour Essef seawater desalination
plant. In Year 2035, a new deficit of 100,000 m3/d
› Work progress: about 95 % in January 2018. is expected and shall be covered by the extension
of the Ksour Essef plant.
It is worth also to mention Ksour Essef desalina-
tion plant, which is a PPP project to be implemen- B Desalination in Saudi Arabia
ted as a complementary potable water resource
by means of a new sea water desalination plant The main challenges facing water security in Saudi
covering five governorates along Tunisia south- Arabia as in almost all MENA countries are:
east coast. The project’s goal is to cover expected
potable water consumption increase by year 2030. › the limited natural water resources;
The needs to cover are mainly population increase,
development of industry and tourism activity › the elevated per-capita consumption;
along the coast, increase in living standard, and
development of potable water networks in the › the rapid increase in population and
countryside. The project estimated costs of the unsustainable growth in water demand;
project is USD 134.4 M (SONEDE, 2018).
Table 6a: Desalination plants of the first phase
Governorate Station Capacity m3/d Technology No. lines
Tozeur Tozeur 6,000 RO 3*2000
Nafta 4,000 RO 2*2000
Hezoua 800 RO 1*800
Kébili Kébili 6,000 RO 3*2000
Souk Lahad 4,000 RO 2*2000
Douz 4,000 RO 2*2000
Gabès Matmata 4,000 RO 2*2000
Mareth 5,000 RO 2*2500
Médenine Béni Khédache 800 RO 1*800
Gafsa Belkhir 1,600 EDR 2*800
Total 36,200
32
Table 6b: Desalination plants of the second phase
Governorate Station Capacity m3/d Technology No. lines
Tozeur Dégueche 2,000 RO 2*1000
Kébili Kébili extension 2,000 RO 2*1000
Sidi Bouzid El Meknassi- 3,000 RO 2*1500

Mazouna-Bouzian
Médenine Ben Guerdane 9,000 RO 3*3000
Gafsa Gafsa Mdhila-Gtar- 9,000 RO 3*3000

Metlaoui
Redayef-Moulares 6,000 2*3000
Total 31,000
› the high costs of water coupled with low tariffs In Figure 11, we show the water supply growth in
making the sector unsustainable; the kingdom.
› the limited private sector participation in the Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest producer of desali-
kingdom’s water sector; and nated water, and its plants are vital to easing a chro-
nic water shortage that has reached acute levels. Of
› the substantial investments required in the the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), 65 % is
near future for new capacity to offset planned in activities exposed to the risk of water shortage,
decommissioning of existing desalination while 64 % of the population is vulnerable to it.
plants.
The largest desalination plant is the Ras Al-Khair,
which uses both membrane and thermal technology
In the vision 2030 of the water sector in the king- with a capacity of over 1,000,000 m3/d, in operation
dom, the key objectives are: since 2013. The Ras Al-Khair plant supplies Maaden
factories with 25,000 m3 of desalinated water and
› Promoting sustainable water supply sources 1,350 MW of electricity. It also supplies with water,
and improving service coverage; the capital city of Riyadh and several central cities
with a total need of 900,000 m3/d (Construction-
› Reducing excessive water consumption; WeekOnline 2013, desalination.biz, 2013). Another
example is the 880,000 m3/d MSF Shuaiba 3 desali-
› Achieving customer satisfaction by providing nation plant that is located along the east coast of
high-quality service and reducing waste; Saudi Arabia and supplies with potable water, the
cities of Jeddah, Makkah, and Taif. Saudi Arabia also
› Reduce the sector dependence on state fun- hosts the Ras Al-Zour unit, producing 800,000 m3/d
ding by taking steps toward privatisation; of water (Henthorne, 2009).
› Improving financial and operational efficiency.
33
Figure 11: The growth in water supply in Saudi Arabia up to 2016
MCM / day
10
/ p.a.
th rate
9 Grow
5,5 %
8
6
Surface and ground water
5
1,182
4 1,947
38 %
3 62 %
2
Desalinated water
2016 Total
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 3,129 MCM
Source: SWCC 2018
Nine new desalination plants along the Red Sea coast total capacity of 150,000 m3/d (50,000 m3/d each)
are planned and will cost USD 530 million and further of drinking water over 20 years. A contract has
increasing the amount of fresh water produced with been signed with the Norwegian company OWD
this technique (SWCC, 2018). (Offshore Water Desalination). The three units will
be installed on barges off the Red Sea coast, initi-
In terms of desalinated water producers in the king ally opposite the desal facilities at Al Shaqiq in the
dom, the private sector is producing 38 % while 62 % southwest, feeding the tanks there, and supplying
is produced by the Saline Water Conversion Corpora- Jazan and Asir provinces. This project is considered
tion (SWCC), which is responsible for: water desalina- for emergency cases to provide additional capaci-
tion, power generation and water transmission in the ty where needed. The three units are expected to
kingdom. be operating by October 2019.
SWCC was established in 1974 as an independent Research, development, and constant innovation
government organization. It is considered the are necessary to compete in such a strategic sec-
World’s largest desalination entity (Production & tor, and to reduce the severe impact that water
Transmission). It is a key player as an electricity scarcity could have on people’s lives and the eco-
producer in the Kingdom, and main contributor nomies of entire nations. Hence, Saudi Arabia is
to research activities in the desalination sector, as increasing significantly its investment in R&D
well as a leading desalination training center. among other efforts by boosting research and
innovation in prestigious research centres and
On the other hand, SWCC has procured three universities such as King Abdullah University of
floating (mobile) desalination units to provide a Science and Technology (KAUST).
34
Figure 12: SWCC main assets
Desalinated Power Water Plant Storage

Water Generation Transmission
4.7 7,305 7,175 29 285

MCM/Day MW KM Plants number of
Total instaled Total instaled total length storage tanks
capacity capacity
21
62 % 12% Transmission 18 With capacity
of desalinated of production systems Different 12.7
water in the capacity in the locations MCM
Kindom Kingdom 56
Pumping stations
12
Mixing stations
Source: SWCC 2018
Figure 13: Main desalination projects in Saudi Arabia
Haqil
Hafr Albatin Kafji
Ras Al-Khair
Dibah
Buraidah Jubail
Alwajh Alnoairya
Al-Madina
Umluj Khobar
Yanbu Al-Hafoof
Riyadh
Rabigh
Large plants
Arizia Makkha
Plants under construction
Jeddah Taif
Other plants Albaha

Shuaaiba
Allaith K. Moshalt
Benefiting cities and towns Al Qunfudhah
Abha
Shuqaiq
Online pipeline
Farasan Jazan
Under construction pipeline
IWPPs Projects
Source: SWCC 2018
35
C Desalination in Jordan Historically, municipalities were responsible for

water distribution, and the Ministry of Health was
Jordan is classified between the arid and semi-arid responsible of water quality monitoring in the early
countries, and is considered one of the most water- fifties in the last century. In 1960 the Central Water
stressed countries in the world, with less than Authority was established to conduct water studies
145 m3 annual per capita of fresh water resources, and obtaining water resources for municipalities.
while the world water poverty line is 1,000 m3. The In 1959 the East Groh Establishment was created
country is divided into 15 surface water basins to implement the first stage of King Abdullah Canal
and 12 ground water basins, some of which ex- (KAC). The Jordan Valley Authority (JVA) was created
tend to neighboring countries. The annual average in 1977 according to JV Dev, low no 18, 1977.
of surface water, is 411 Mm³ and of safe ground-
water abstraction is 275 Mm³. The Ministry of water and irrigation (MoWI) was
established in 1988 as an umbrella for both author-
Water resources depend on rainfall which varies ities to improve drinking water services and to
in quantities, intensity and distribution from year lighten the financial burden on the Jordanian
to year, with most of it falling between the months government, the MoWI established three main
of October and May. water companies working commercial biases.
Trans-boundary surface and ground water re- Miyahuna is the leading company established in
sources contribute to an important share of the 2007 providing water. Miyahuna is fully owned
water resources of the country. These resources by the Water Authority of Jordan (WAJ). The main
are governed by bilateral treaties and agreements desalination plants are shown in Table 8.
for their mutual management and utilization.
In terms of water uses, Table 7 shows the uses per

sector.
Table 7: Distribution of water uses in Jordan (considering: surface water, groundwater and treated wastewater
“TWW”)
Sectors (Mm3)
Sources Municipality Industrial Irrigation Live-stock Total
Surface 123.75 3 155 7 288.75
Ground 333.15 27.37 257.8 0.63 618.95
TWW 0 2.1 134.24 0 136.34
Total 456.9 32.46 547.04 7.63 1,044.03
% 43.7 3 52.4 0.9 100
36
Table 8: Jordanian desalination plants
Desalination/ Raw water Capacity m3/d Technology Cost USD /m3

Water treatment resources
plant
Zarqa Ma’aen Zarqa Ma’aen 130,000 Pretreatment sand 0.85

spring surface filters
water sources RO, UV, CL2 Disin-
fection
Abu Zighan Abu Zighab 60,000 Pretreatment sand 0.60

brackish (12) wells filters RO
Zarqa Zarqa brackish (3) 9,400 Pretreatment sand 0.33

wells filters
RO, CL2 Disinfection
Mashtal Faisal Mashtal Faisal 9,000 Aeration tank, 0.37

brackish (8) wells ceramic microfilt-
ration (MF) filters,
RO, CL2 Disinfection
Other minor desal Ground water 50 – 120 Mobile RO Cost is varied

plant (wells) because its opera-
ted by the private
sector (O&M)
1 Aqaba are used for drinking purposes, agricultural and

industrial needs. This plant will meet Aqaba’s water
A seawater desalination plant to be built to supply needs until the year 2035, and is fully supplied with
the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) renewable energy resources, with solar energy
in the southern port city in Jordan. The plant will generating electricity for the entire project. A large
supply 20 million m3/y of desalinated water (55,000 portion of water is pumped into the Aqaba Water
m3/d). The bid submissions deadline was 1st April Company network to be distributed to its consumers.
2019. A water desalination plant opened in Aqaba In addition, the plant provides the same amount
on March 2017, set to work at a capacity of 12,000 of water as the Disi project, the main water convey-
m3/d at the cost of USD 1.1/m3. The desalination ance project that brings water to Amman from Disi
project was implemented on the principle of build- aquifer in the southern desert.
operate-transfer (BOT). This formula of public-
private partnership (PPP) allows the state to recover 2 Red-Dead Sea
its investment after a set period. In this case, it is
seven years, and when the firm transfers it to the The second big desalination plant is pending yet,
government, it will be helping the Ministry of Water which is the so-called Red-Dead Sea water project.
and Irrigation run the facility. The clean water A total of 85 – 100 Mm3 of water will be desalina-
generated is estimated at around 5 Mm3 annually, ted every year, while the seawater will be pumped
37
out from an intake located in the north of the Gulf › The only reliable saline water source is the Red
of Aqaba. Jordan signed a memorandum of under- Sea which is at a far distance from the popula-
standing (MoU) with Israel and the Palestinian ted area in the main cities which has adverse
Authority in December 2013 to implement the first effect on:
phase of the Red-Dead project.
› Desalination cost;
Under the first phase, a total of 300 Mm3 of water › Water transportation cost;
would be pumped each year. Eventually, up to › Cheap and affordable technology;
2 bn m3 of seawater will be transferred from the › Funding desalination projects;
Red Sea to the Dead Sea annually, according to › Political challenges.
the Jordanian Ministry of Water and Irrigation. In
addition, a conveyor will be extended to transfer The lessons that could be learnt from the Jordanian
desalinated water and a pipeline will be installed experience are:
to dump the brine into the Dead Sea to stop its
constant decline, estimated at one meter every › Desalination plants in Jordan operated in high
year. The Kingdom will receive an additional 50 efficiency (80 – 90 %);
Mm3 of water from the Lake Tiberias Reservoir
annually to be added to its share from the desali- › Pretreatment cost in Jordan is effective be-
nation station to provide Aqaba with water. cause of efficient operation (adding suitable
chemical dosages);
The Red-Dead project‘s main components will
include a seawater intake structure; an intake › To bridge the gap between demand and sup-
pump station; a seawater pipeline; a desalination ply of water desalination will be the possible
plant with a capacity of 65 – 85 Mm³ per year; a solution.
desalination brine conveyance pipeline; two lifting
pump stations; hydropower plants; and discharge
facilities at the Dead Sea. Under the signed MoU, D Desalination in Palestine
the Palestinian Authority will receive 30 Mm3 of
freshwater to cover its water deficit, while Israel The main water player in Palestine is the Palestin
will buy its share of 50 Mm3 of desalinated water ian Water Authority (PWA), which has been esta-
from the project at cost value, and sell Jordan the blished in 1995 as a Governmental Organization
same amount of water in the northern Jordan attached to the Prime Minister. Its main mission
Valley at a cost of USD 0.38/m3. is to develop and protect water resources and
infrastructure in a just, integrated and sustainable
3 Challenges and lessons learnt on desalination in manner to provide water suitable for different
Jordan: purposes which guarantee environment protec
tion and achieve development objectives. Its geo-
The main challenges facing the sector in Jordan are: graphical and thematic area of intervention inclu-
des East Jerusalem, Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
› A severe shortage of saline water sources and
dispersed with limited quantities; In Gaza, the water situation is critical in quantity
and quality, and its coastal area aquifer suffers
› Jordanian Inhabitants are concentrated at far from high salinity and sea water intrusion (Figures
distances from sources; 14a, b, c).
› Costly power generation which influences the Desalination is a must in Gaza. The EU-funded
cost of desalination. Southern Gaza Desalination Plant will bring fresh
water to nearly 14 % of the population by 2020
38
Figure 14a: Gaza ground level map in 2016
WI value m (MSL) < -6 – -4

< -18.8 < -4 – -2
< -18.8 – -16 < -2 – 0
< -16 – -13 <0–2
< -13 – -10 <2–4
< -10 – -8 <4–6
< -8 – -6 < 6 – 12.6
Figure 14b: Gaza chloride mapping in 2016 Figure 14c: Gaza nitrate mapping in 2016
CI Value mg/l No3 Value mg/l

< 250 < 50
250 – 600 50 – 100
600 – 1,000 100 – 150
1,000 – 1,500 150 – 200
1,500 – 2,000 200 – 300
> 2,000 > 300
Source: Al-Sheikh, PWA 2018
39
(the plant currently provides water to 75,000 › USD 60 M committed, 65 % of total costs pledged;
people; 250,000 is the target by 2020) and has the
potential to mitigate societal and political tensions › The Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) has de-
in a highly vulnerable area, where 97 % of water veloped a feasibility study on natural gas (NG)
resources are unfit for consumption. We list here supply from Israel.
after the main desalination projects:
1 Gaza Central Sea Water Desalination Plant a. Khan Younis Short Term Low Volume Desalination
Plant
Table 9 shows the profile of Gaza desalination
facility project. This project was labelled by the This plant (Figure 15) has a capacity of 6,000 m3/d.
secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean In addition an expansion to 20,000 m3/d is under
(UfM). tendering.
› 55 Mm3/y phase 1 to be doubled in phase 2; Solar Energy:
› ESIA completed, conceptual design furnished › Existing: 130 KWp contributes to 10 – 12 % of
including energy options; energy demand. In addition; 7 KW provides the
full needs of the administration building;
› Associated works detailed design completed;
› In process: 560 KWp to be able to operate one
› Total Cost Estimate USD 600 M; line (2,000 m3/d).
Table 9: Desalination Facility for the Gaza Strip
Promoter Palestinian Water Authority (PWA)
Result > 55 Mm3/y of drinking water

› North-South water conveyance system
› Non-revenue water (NRW) reduction programme
Beneficiaries 1.7 M Gaza inhabitants
Duration 2014 – 2017
Partners › European Investment Bank

› Islamic Development Bank
› World Bank
› European Commission
Budget USD 347 M
40
Figure 15: Khan Younis Short Term Low Volume Desalination Plant
2 Deir Al Balah Short Term Low Volume Desalination In terms of brackish water, there are 154 desali-
Plant nation plants with a total of 3 Mm3/y of produced
water distributed as follows:
› 2,600 m3/d seawater desalination plant exists
(Figure 16); › 26 North
› 51 Gaza
› Expansion to 6,000 m3/d under construction; › 29 Middle
› 35 Khan Younis
› Solar Energy: PVs with capacity 400 KWp to cover › 13 Rafah
the needs of administration and laboratory.
PWA accumulated considerable experience and
3 North Gaza Short Term Low Volume Desalination knowledge in fixing price limits of desalinated
Plant water sales, and in what comes to incentives to
the private sector. While on the other hand, there
› 10,000 m3/d seawater desalination plant under is still a need in terms of the legal framework,
construction; commitments to the public sector, and improving
revenue collection under severe political and
› Solar Energy: PVs with capacity 7 KWp to cover socio-economical situations.
the needs of the administration building.
A partial solution to the Gaza water crisis resides
in the development of a new desalination facility,
41
Figure 16: Deir Al Balah Short Term Low Volume Desalination Plant
which is labelled as an UfM (Union for the Mediter- Figure 18 shows the type of feedwater used in
ranean) project. Its aim is to provide safe drinking desalination plants in Oman. More than 60 % is
water for more than 2 M people and to decrease seawater. On the other hand, the impact on water
the pumping demands on the aquifer, which in tariffs is shown in Figure 19 provided by NAMA /
turn can help the small Gazan agricultural and OPWP (NAMA is the highest governmental entity in
tourism sectors. charge of delivering safe, reliable and efficient elec-
tricity and water services, and OPWP is the Oman
Power and Water Procurement Company).
E Desalination in Oman
In the near term to 2020, the tariff is expected to
In Oman, Oman Power and Water Procurement decline by 40 % due to:
(OPWP) is the entity that develops desalination
projects requirements of power and water capaci- › Retirement of Ghubrah IWPP (MSF Technology);
ties through the fair and transparent competition
process. The private sector investment in the de- › Shifting other MSF plants to standby mode
salination sector is about USD 2.6 bn up to 2019. (Barka I, Sohar I); and
The current capacity is around 1.5 Mm3/d and will
reach 2 Mm3/d by 2023 (Figure 17). › Lower expected tariffs of upcoming large IWPs
(Qurayat, Sohar III, Barka IV).
42
Figure 17: Desalination capacity in Oman from 2010 to 2023
North Batinah IWP
Ghubrah III IWP
Salalah III IWP

2,039,000
Aseelah IWP
m3/day
Sohar III IWP
Barka IV IWP
1,503,000
m3/day Qurayyat IWP
Qurayyat temporary IWP
Aseelah temporary IWP
Ghubrah II IWP
Salalah IWPP
608,00
m3/day Sur IWP
Barka II IWPP
Barka I (RO)
Sohar I IWPP
Barka I (MSF)
Ghubrah IWPP
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Source: OPWP 2018
Figure 18: Type of feed water used in desalination plants in Oman
2,16
32,70
60,40
1,44
1,88
Brackish water Brine Tap water Seawater Wastewater
Source: OPWP 2018
43
Figure 19: Impact on Oman water bulk supply tariff (BST)
0,6
0,559
0,549 0,545
0,516
0,501
0,5
0,486
0,440 0,423
0,4
0,329
0,352
0,3
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Source: OPWP 2018
The following map (Figure 20) shows the new Table 10 presents some characteristics of some
planned projects. The following ones are under Omani desalination plants in operation. Moreover,
construction: the following ones are under development in 2019:
› Barka IV IWP: equipped by a combination of › Khasab IWP: 16,000 m3/d

dissolved air floatation (DAF) and dual media › North Batinah IWP: 150,000 m3/d
gravity filtration (DMGF) for pretreatment, › Al Ghubrah III IWP: 300,000 m3/d
which is quite efficient to deal with the harm- › Sharqiyah IWP: 80,000 m3/d
ful algal blooms (HABs) which threatens the › Salalah II IWP: 100,000 m3/d
production when it invades the costs; › Wadi Dayqah IWP: 90,000 – 120,000 m3/d
› Qurrayyat IWP: with a combination of dissol- In terms of procurement models used in Omani
ved air floatation (DAF) and dual media filtra- desalination projects, almost procurements are
tion (DMF) for pretreatment; EPC, which is a particular form of contracting
arrangement used in some industries where the
› Sohar IV IWP: with a combination of dissolved EPC contractor is made responsible for all the
air floatation (DAF) and dual media gravity activities from design, procurement, construction,
filtration (DMGF) for pretreatment. commissioning and handover of the project to the
end-user or owner.
It is noticeable that future SWRO plants will use
DAF as an additional pretreatment step further In Figure 21, we show the main private sector
to the severe membrane fouling experienced in players in the Omani desalination industry (holding
these regions observed especially during red tide companies). Data were provided by desal data
events, which forced several plants to shut-down (GWI, 2018). In Oman, it was found that seawater
in the past. is the most used feed in desalination plants; due
to its availability. The leading holding company and
supplier is Veolia.
44
Figure 20: Oman new planned desalination plants
Khasab IWP Barka II WPP

Barka IV IWP
Barka IWPP PH.I
Barka IWPP PH.II
Sohar IWPP Barka IWPP
Sohar III IWPP Gubrah IWPP

Gubrah II IWP
Qurayyat Temporary IWP
Gubrah III IWPP
Qurayyat IWP Sur II IWP
Aseelah IWP
Aseelah
Temporary IWP
Operational
Under construction
Salalah IWPP Under development
Salalah III IWP
Source: OPWP 2018
Table 10: Characteristics of some Omani desalination plants in operation
Operation Date / Desalination Plant Characteristics
2009: Barka II IWPP First RO desalination plant
2009: Sur IWP Extract water from Beach wells
2010: Salalah IWPP Cylcone filtration system
2014: Barka PH I IWP 8 units of Ultra filtration 0.01 – 0.1 microns
2015: Al Ghubrah II IWP Combination of dissolved air floatation (DAF) and

dual media filtration (DMF) for pretreatment
2016 : Barka PH II IWP 14 units of Micro-filters 0.1 – 0.2 microns
45
Figure 21: Operators of desalination plants in Oman
2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Abengoa
Ace Water Treatment Co. Ltd
Advanced Watertek Pty Ltd
Al Burooj
American Engineering Services
Aquamatch
Aquatech International Corporation
Bauer International
Boustead Salcon Water Solutions Pte Ltd
Concorde-Corodex Group
Consolidated Contractors Co.
Consortium
Desalia
Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., Ltd.
Doshi Ion Exchange
GdF Suez
GLV
Hitachi Zosen Corporation
Hyflux
International Desalination & Water Treatment L.L.C.
Ion Exchange Ltd.
Lyng Group
Metito
Modern Water
Oman National Electric Company
Ovivo
ProMinent
Sacyr Vallehermoso SA
Sasakura Engineering Co Ltd
Severn Trent Plc
Suez
Sychem
TBD
Temak SA
VA Tech Wabag Ltd.
Veolia
Xylem Inc.
Source: Desaldata/GWI
Brackish water desalination is also widespread in affected countries. The situation is expected to
Oman mainly for agricultural use. At the North of worsen in the future due to the continuing decli-
Oman (the Batinah region) groundwater over ab- ne in rainfall (10 % less precipitation is predicted
straction is causing seawater intrusion and salini- between 2021 and 2050). At the same time socio
sation of soils along the Batinah coast, while there economic development and tourism is creating
is an essential agricultural activity in this area. In more water demand. Existing infrastructure that
2019, more than 250 farms are using desalination supplies drinking water to 900,000 inhabitants in
to provide irrigation water. the areas of Agadir, Inezgane and Aït Melloul, as
well as water for irrigation, needs to be upgraded
F Desalination in Morocco and expanded to cope.
Morocco’s exploitable groundwater reserves have The Moroccan desalination experience imple-
dwindled over recent decades and it is today one mented by the National Office of Electricity and
of the world’s most drought and climate change Drinking Water (ONEE) was 20 years ago closely
46
related to the water supply in south Moroccan maintain a 275,000 m3/d desalination plant in
areas which lack fresh water and have limited bra- Agadir. SEDA (a joint-venture company formed
ckish water resources. In Morocco, the objectives by Abengoa Water and InfraMaroc) and the SPV
of water desalination are mainly: Aman El Baraka will construct and run the plant –
which will use state-of-the-art ultrafiltration pre-
› Drinking water supply in areas that lack con- treatment systems and RO technology – under a
ventional water resources; 30-year build-operate-transfer contract. The global
capacity at term will be of 400,00 m3/d of which:
› Securing the supply of drinking water to face 1st phase: 275,000 m3/d (150,000 m3/d for drin-
the impact of climate change. king water needs and 125,000 m3/d for irrigation
water). This is an RO plant to be built under PPP
In terms of capacity, Morocco is planning 13 desa- agreement (BOT of 20 years), and commissioning
lination plants, and contracted already a capacity is expected for 2020.
of seawater desalination of 275,000 m3/d, which
is Agadir desalination plant (under construction). The plant will meet domestic demand for drinking
Morocco has accumulated considerable experien- water in addition to demand for irrigation water
ce and know-how in desalination since 1976. This in the region, contributing to the development of
can be resumed as follows: the tourism and agricultural sectors, and preven-
ting the over-exploitation of aquifers. The plant’s
› Study and choice of feed water intake modes; capacity has the potential to be increased by an
additional 125,000 m3/d, providing even greater
› Awareness on the environmental aspect; water security. This is the first privately financed
contract that ONEE has introduced. Its successful
› Choice of piping materials and equipment; financial close is expected to lead to further PPP
projects, unlocking new sources of investment and
› Control of operating ratios; helping to deliver more desalination plants, which
have previously been unaffordable due to their
› Control of energy ratios: from 7 to 2 kWh/m3; high CAPEX and OPEX costs.
› Acquisition of expertise in desalination; The project involves construction of three storage

tanks with a cumulative capacity of 5,500 m3 and
› Technology watch; pumping stations to facilitate the delivery of water
to households in Laâyoune. It is projected to have
› Desalination costs: from USD 3.4 to less than a capacity of 26,000 m3/d in the future.
USD 1.1.
A new desalination plant is set to be developed
The main desalination projects in development are: in Laayoune in a bid to boost the drinking water
supply in the Western Sahara. According to ONEE,
› Agadir desalination plant: 150,000 m3/d of drin- which is implementing the project, the desalina-
king water in its first phase; tion plant will be operational by June 2021 and is
› Al Hoceima desalination plant: 17,300 m3/d; expected to meet the city’s drinking water needs
› Sidi Ifni desalination plant: 8,600 m3/d. until 2040. The project will require an investment
of USD 41 M. The project is also in support of the
ONEE (Office National de l’Electricité et de l’Eau 2020 – 2027 Priority Drinking Water Supply and
Potable), Morocco’s main water utility, together Irrigation Programme, which is now being rolled
with the country’s Ministry of Agriculture and out in Morocco.
Fishery, launched a public private partnership
(PPP) to finance, design, construct, operate and
47
Some other projects are in the pipeline, mainly: Table 11 summarizes the planned desalination
plants with a total capacity of 319,345 m3/d.1
› Casablanca desalination plant: 300,000 m3/d;
› Safi desalination plant: 26,000 m3/d; Morocco has developed a water/sanitation strategy,
› Agadir extension: 50,000 m3/d; including the development of non-conventional
› Sidi Ifni extension: 8,600 m3/d. water resources. Desalination is one of the proven
Table 11: State of the art of Moroccan desalination plants
Project Capacity m3/d Technology Current status
Casablanca desal / / Conceptual stage: potential capacity

plant options under study
Chbika desal plant / / Financial close and start of construction:

The timeline for the tendering remains
unclear.
Dakhla Municipal 17,300 RO The plant is scheduled to be developed

SWRO in 2020.
Dakhla SWRO 74,845 RO Consultant/client issues RFQ/RFP:

A contract for a 5,000 ha irrigation
scheme with a 74,845 m³/d seawater
desalination plant (of which 2,200 m3/d
would be for drinking water), twenty
500m-deep boreholes with a supply
capacity of about 15,000 m³/d, and a
26 MW wind-powered plant power
around 130km north of Dakhla.
Essaouira 50,000 RO This project is a long-term proposal

and will not be commissioned until
2020 or 2025.
Jorf Lasfar 30,900 RO Professional advisor / consultant man-

extension dated
Laayoune SWRO 26,000 RO To be operational on 2021
Safi 75,800 RO This plant is part of OCP’s long-term

strategy to reduce demand for ground-
water resources at its phosphate
production facility at Safi, south-west of
the city of El Jadida.
1
Table 11 also lists desalination plants in Western Sahara. The claim to the Western Sahara is the reason of state and a central
concern of Moroccan politics. The status of Western Sahara is unsettled under international law.
48
Table 11 (continued): State of the art of Moroccan desalination plants
Project Capacity m3/d Technology Current status
Safi municipal 26,000 RO To build a 26,000 m3/d seawater

SWRO reverse osmosis desalination plant to
serve the city of Safi. This project is
a long-term proposal, and any plant
which is constructed will not be com-
missioned until after 2025.
Sidi Ifni phase 1 8,600 RO These two seawater desalination plants

in the south of Morocco are part of
ONEE’s long-term desalination strategy.
Sidi Ifni phase 2 8,600 RO Phase 2 of a 34,560 m³/d SWRO, a gro-

wing tourist destination. ONEE plans to
build the plant in phases, with the first
phase of 8,640 m³/d designed to meet
the local population’s needs awarded in
2018. The second phase of 8,600 m3/d
is likely to be awarded in 2020/2021.
Tan Tan port / / Conceptual stage: Morocco’s national

desalination port agency, Agence Nationale des
Ports, is considering a desalination
plant to supply the port of Tan Tan in
southern Morocco. The plant would be
powered by renewable energy.
Tarfaya SWRO 1,300 RO To build a new 1,300 m3/d seawater

reverse osmosis plant in the town of
Tarfaya. The capacity will eventually be
doubled.
Source: GWI 2018
and safe solutions for mobilising additional water national cooperation, maintaining a technological
resources. The effects of climate change require and institutional watch are undeniable levers for
rethinking desalination at the heart of water sup- the sharing of best practices, with the aim of mas-
ply alternatives: Between types of use and diffe- tering technology, optimising costs and setting
rent resources. up an adequate acquisition mode. ONEE is a key
player actively involved in knowledge sharing in
On the other hand, the Water-Energy Nexus aims the field of water desalination.
to strengthen the synergies between the two sec-
tors in the context of sustainable development. In
addition, continuous training, regional and inter-
49
G Desalination in Algeria 1 Context
In Algiers since 2006, urban water supply is ma- The droughts during 2004 triggered the choice to
naged by a public company SEAAL in cooperation invest in large-scale seawater desalination. Thus,
with a private partner SUEZ environment. The the extent and severity of droughts which are exa-
company provides drinking water services to ap- cerbated by climate change, will be critical factors
proximately 3 million people. In 2011, the Algerian driving desalination investments. According to the
authorities renewed and extended the contract Algerian minister of energy, the specifications for
with SUEZ for five years to help modernise the the implementation of two seawater desalination
water and wastewater management services for plants in Zéralda (Algiers) and El-Tarf are under
Algiers. preparation.
On the other hand, Algerian Waters (ADE) is a Despite having 11 large scale desalination plants,
national public establishment of an industrial freshwater availability in the country is rapidly
and commercial character endowed with the falling far below the UN’s water poverty threshold
good personality and financial autonomy. It was (less than 300 m3/y), which is 1,000 m3 per capita
established by Executive Decree No. 01-101 of 27 per year. In the 1960s, Algeria‘s annual per capita
Moharem 1422 corresponding to 21 April 2001. availability was more than 1,000 m3. Currently, it is
The establishment is under the supervision of the 292 m3.
Minister in charge of water resources, and its head
office is set in Algiers. It must ensure the imple- Desalination production accounted for approxi-
mentation of the national drinking water policy mately 17 % of water consumed in 2017, and it is
throughout the national territory through the increasing considerably in the last decade as you
management of production, transport, treatment, can appreciate in Figure 22.
storage, supply, distribution and supply of drin-
king water and industrial water and the renewal 2 Desalination plants
and development of related infrastructure;
Oran was the first major city to use desalinated
The ADE has 15 zones and 44 units; each zone water for drinking water supply through Kahrama
manages 2 to 4 units (ADE, 2018). project which is an independent water and power
Figure 22: Desalination capacity (Mm3/d) in Algeria since 2006 and up to 2016
2006 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016
50
project (IWPP). The facility produces a net power lay down, the cost price of the desalinated seawa-
output of 314 MW coupled with an average annual ter and the deadlines for completion of these two
water production of 88,000 m3/d, and by 2008 plants with a capacity of 300,000 m3/d each.
Algiers became the second city in using desalina-
tion for drinking water supply. On the other hand, in terms of brackish water,
the application of a solar-powered desalination
Nine other large-scale SWRO plants are in operation system to treat it is resulting in high-quality desali-
at several locations to supply drinking water Desali- nated water that could provide water for irrigation
nation plants in Algeria have a cumulative capacity in arid regions of Algeria.
of about 2 Mm3/d. Later on, the largest plant was
Magtaa. Its construction started in October 2008, In 2019, there are several municipal brackish
and was completed to begin operations in November groundwater desalination facilities in Algeria, with
2014. The plant features the world‘s largest ultra- capacities ranging from 9,000 to 40,000 m3/d.
filtration (UF) membranes with a total production
capacity of 500,000 m3/d. Table 12 shows the most Twelve brackish water desalination plants are ope-
important desalination plants in Algeria. rational in the North Western Sahara Aquifer Sys-
tem (NWSAS), with average electricity consumption
According to the Algerian ministry of energy, the in the range of 0.5 – 2.5 kWh/m3. Integrating solar
specifications for the construction of two seawater power to existing desalination facilities could
desalination plants in Zéralda (Algiers) and El-Tarf generate a high-value product from low-value
are under preparation. These specifications should resources.
Table 12: Desalination plants in Algeria have a cumulative capacity of about 2 Mm3/d
Project Capacity m3/d Commissioning Partners
Kahrama 88,000 since 2006 J. Burrow Ltd: 50 %
Hamma 200,000 since 2008 GE Ionics, US: 70 %
Skikda 100,000 since 2009 Geida (Befesa / Sadyt), Spain: 51 %
Beni Saf 200,000 since 2010 Obra, Spain: 51 %
Souk Tlata 200,000 since 2011 TDIC (Hyflux / Malakoff), Singapour: 51 %
Fouka 120,000 since 2011 AWI (Snc Lavalin / Acciona): 51 %
Mostaganem 200,000 since 2011 Inima / Aqualia, Spain: 51 %
Honaine 200,000 since 2012 Geida (Befesa / Sadyt), Spain: 51 %
Cap Djinet 100,000 since 2014 Inima / Aqualia, Spain: 51 %
Tenes 200,000 since 2015 Befesa, Spain: 51 %
Magtaa 500,000 November 2015 Hyflux, Singapore: 47 %; ADE, 10 %
51
3 Gaps and Needs in the desalination sector What is probably needed in Algerian desalination
sector, is more data to assist decisions and stra-
The desalination plants are actively collaborating tegies to mitigate brine disposal and its impact on
with Algerian universities: the marine ecosystem. Other options to bridge
the water gap in Algeria include rationalisation
› Students of different specialties do their practi- of virtual water trade and the use of renewable
cal internships at the desalination plants; energy (RE) for desalination.
› Signed an agreement with universities to create The Algerian government is currently implemen-
new specialties of engineering in seawater ting a series of desalination plants strategically
desalination. placed in other water scarce coastal cities that
also had high competing demands from industry.
That is said, there is still a need for a desalination Given the high energy requirements of water de-
platform that could gather national facilities to salination, some projects also included co-located
improve capacity building among operators, engi- power plants.
neers and technicians. Therefore, it is important to
allocate resources to capacity building programs.
To achieve this, it is required to create a basis for From the aforementioned information, it is clear
cooperation between the academic and research that desalination capacity will continue increasing
communities at a national and regional level. Sha- in the whole MENA region and not only in oil pro-
ring of best practices in the region would contribu- ducing countries, and there will be an increasing
te to demonstrating that openness and collabora- need of training on O&M of desalination plants
tion can lead to innovation in such a vital sector. and an increasing concern about the environmen-
tal impact and ways to make desalination more
At the research level, some cooperation agree- environment friendly. One day is to use renewable
ments exist between the ADE, the National Sanita- energies, which will be detailed in the following
tion Office (ONA) and research institutions for the section.
water-related issues.
Algeria and the European Union (EU) signed the

Prima agreement on scientific cooperation to
increase research in the key sectors of water and
agriculture. The PRIMA initiative (2018 – 2028),
aims to develop new solutions for sustainable
water management and food production.
In terms of cost, the lowest cost case is Magtaa

plant: USD 0.55/m3 of water and a total investment
cost of approximately USD 468 M, while the most
expensive case is Hamma plant: USD 0.75/m3 of
water and a total investment cost of approximately
USD 200 M. It is worth to mention that before
Hamma desalination plant became operational
almost 11 years ago, all citizens of Algiers city lived
with water delivered for only a couple of hours
every second or third day. Today, the city has
reliable and constant water on tap.
52
III. Renewable
Desalination in MENA
Taking into account the climate protection targets sources to power desalination. Renewable energy
and significant environmental concerns, future technologies offer increasingly attractive solutions
desalination technologies worldwide will be increa- to power desalination, a vital issue for many count-
singly powered by solar, wind and other renewable ries in arid and semi-arid regions, including the
energy sources. As conventional energy costs will countries of the MENA region.
expectedly increase in the short term and water
availability will decrease due to the implications With solar irradiation quite ample in the MENA
derived from climate change, the future of RE- region that heavily rely on desalination, solar-
powered desalination is very promising for en- powered desalination provides one of the most
vironmental and economic reasons; it is, in fact, successful renewable energies options and a
already a competitive alternative where water sustainable solution to meeting water needs. The
costs are very high (Cipollina et al., 2014). compatibility of each desalination process with
solar technology is driven by whether the kind
In an attempt to lower carbon footprint resulting of energy needed is thermal or electrical, as well
from energy-intensive desalination processes, as its availability. A number of different techno-
attention has shifted to using renewable energy logies allow the exploitation of renewable energy
Figure 23: Price of crystalline silicon PV modules: 1977 – 2015 (USD/watt)
76.67
4.10
0.74
0.42
2008 2015
1977 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2013 2015
Source: Ferreira 2018
53
resources, providing energy as heat (solar ther- energy resources or consider the real cost of desa-
mal, biomass, geothermal), power (wind power, lination projects.
wave power, solar photovoltaic) or even a com-
bination of both energy forms (solar thermal Since the energy requirements in desalination
electricity). processes play a decisive role, it appears attractive
to consider renewable energies, because it offers
With rapid advances in solar energy technologies – a sustainable and secure way to desalinate water.
both photovoltaic and solar thermal, there has Until recently, only small desalination plants in
also been growing interest in coupling solar energy remote areas with no grid electricity and no skilled
with desalination, with a focus on improving energy manpower used renewable energies, but as R&D
efficiency. has intensified, several pilot desalination plants
in the MENA region have operated successfully
The main challenge of renewable energy desali- using mainly solar energy (Ullah, I. and Rasul, M.
nation is that desalination technologies generally G. 2018).
work in steady-state conditions, but renewable
energy sources are usually non-stationary (inter- Moreover, the combination of desalination with
mittent): renewable energies generation, even if not directly
powered by it, can facilitate its penetration in the
› Renewable energy generation needs adjust- grid (compensation). This can not only enhance the
ments for continuous supply (energy storage); renewable component of energy generation by ab-
sorbing its surplus and storing it in water but can
› Desalination technologies can adapt to variable be crucial in weak grids that otherwise could not
operation. accommodate the renewable component, like in
the case of small islands (Tzen et al. 2012). Increa-
In addition, land cost and size are also challenging sing efforts are devoted to improving the efficien-
renewable desalination. That is said, there is excel- cies of the RE conversions, desalination techno-
lent potential to develop solar desalination technologies and their optimal coupling to make them
logies especially in MENA where solar energy is ab- viable for small and medium scale applications.
undant and the cost of photovoltaic (PV) declining.
Concentrated solar energy (i. e., sunlight focused by
PV powered desalination has previously been re- lenses and/or mirrors) can be used to desalinate
garded as not being a cost-competitive solution by focusing solar radiation into a receiver that
when compared with conventionally powered desa- collects energy from the sun as heat; this heat can
lination; however, the decline in PV costs over the then be used to desalinate water by evaporating
last few years (Figure 23) has changed this out- pure water from a saline source (Ghaffour et al.,
look. 2015).
Over the next few years, we will witness a huge On the other hand, there is an excellent potential
number of desalination projects in MENA to for solar desalination to grow further in the MENA
respond to the increasing demand of domestic, region. There are several ambitious projects in
industrial, agricultural and touristic sectors (5 to Saudi Arabia and the UAE to develop large solar
6 % annual increase). In addition, there is an desalination plants, including a project in the area
increasing interest in the region to localise desali- of Al-Khafji on Saudi Arabia’s eastern coast and
nation technologies to cut the full dependency on one in the area of Ras Al-Khaimah in the UAE. Both
the international market (desal elements such as plants are set to become operational by 2020 and
membranes, etc.). Moreover, policymakers in the will be among the largest in the world (the initial
MENA need to consider the different choices for phase of Al-Khafji solar desalination plant will pro-
desalination based on locally available renewable duce 30,000 m3/d, and this capacity will double in
54
the next few years). The Al-Khafji one will be a benefits are clear: not only does it cut costs, but it
disassociated RO and PV system. RO will take energy also reduces carbon dioxide emissions and fossil-
from the grid and PV will be injected in the grid, fuel dependency.
compensating the energy load. In fact, this plant
will be the world’s largest desalination plant of its Several different technologies allow the exploita-
kind thanks to a new kind of concentrated solar tion of renewable energy (RE) resources, providing
power (CSP) technology and new water-filtration energy as heat, power or even a combination of
technology, which King Abdulaziz City for Science both. Possible combinations with desalination
and Technology (KACST) developed with IBM. technologies are shown in Table 13.
In such a concentrated solar system, lenses or RO coupled with solar PV, is one of the most popu-
mirrors focus sunlight on ultra-efficient solar cells lar combinations in the MENA region. Therefore, it
that convert the light into electricity. The idea is to follows that:
cut costs by using fewer semiconductor solar cell
materials. However, multiplying the sun’s power › RE generation needs adjustments for continu-
by hundreds of times creates a lot of heat. The ous supply (energy storage), or compensation
Al-Khafji desalination plant is the first of three steps by connecting solar energy output to the exis-
in a solar-energy program launched by KACST to ting grid, feeding the desalination plan directly
reduce desalination costs. The second step will be a from it as in Al-Khafji and many other medium
300,000 m3 facility, and the third phase will involve scale plants;
several more solar-power desalination plants at
various locations. › Emerging desalination technologies have an
advantage that can adapt to the variable opera-
A similar principle but this time with CSP is behind tion or operate under variable energy input like
the desalination plant that is under construction membrane distillation and adsorption desalina-
currently by Abengoa in Agadir (Morocco). The tion or hybrid systems (Ghaffour et al., 2015);
Table 13: Coupling options of solar energy with the different desalination processes
Conventional Desalination processes
Solar Technology MSF MED MVC RO
Concentrating Parabolic Collectors X X X X

(Solar thermoelectric station
producing both electricity and
eventually heat through a
cogeneration arrangement)
Flat Plate / Evacuated Tubular X X

Collectors
Salt Gradient Solar Pond X X
Photovoltaic (PV) X X
Source: GWI El Kharraz 2015, Al-Karaghouli et al. 2011, IRENA 2012
55
Several MENA research institutions like MEDRC For PV, battery storage remains costly, and for CSP,
in Oman, Masdar in UAE, KAUST in Saudi Arabia thermal energy can be stored relatively inexpensi-
(KSA), Khalifa University in Qatar, and CIEMAT vely. Intermittent operation is a particular concern
in Spain, are heavily involved in developing when dispatchable power is required. For water
novel RE integrated systems. production, the situation is more complicated.
While water storage is relatively inexpensive, inter-
Solar still is one of the explored options for RE mittent use of a desalination plant to meet base-
desalination. Many modifications to improve their load water demand requires oversizing the plant
performance have been made. These include adding relative to what would be needed under steady
solar energy collectors, incorporating a number of operation. There is also another concept of elec-
effects to recover the latent heat of condensation, tricity and water production mismatch in GCC
improving the configurations and flow patterns countries.
to increase the heat transfer rates, and using less
expensive materials of construction to reduce the On the other hand, when power tariffs vary during
cost. The solar still has many advantages like the low the day, energy cost savings through intermittent
water cost, simplicity and durability. According to the operation may offset the high capital cost of a
literature, its production rates are 5 to 8 L/m2 day. A larger plant.
glasshouse of 1,000 m3 will have a water production
between 5,000 to 8,000 L/d. This is 1,825 to 2,920 The prices of PV electricity have been significantly
m3 of fresh water per year. The water production reduced over the last decade to levels in parity
costs can be estimated at 1.09 to USD 1.74/m3 of with unsubsidized electricity rates in areas of high
freshwater, quite competitive and not much higher solar irradiation in the MENA region mainly where
than the cost of water produced by conventional there is a need to expand desalination capacity.
ways, yet here we are comparing very small to very
large scales costs. A solar still pilot is installed at The assessment made by Fthenakis (Fthenakis
MEDRC facilities in Oman under the framework of a 2015) shows that PV powering RO desalination
research project funded by the Dutch government plants results in significant cost savings when
and coordinated by the Dutch company Kascade. both the direct and fuel subsidy costs of elec-
tricity generation are considered.
Several successful solar desalination projects have
been implemented in the MENA region but on Recently, several utility-scale PV projects in high
a small scale. In Oman, solar energy has been a insolation regions have been bid at prices ranging
key area for the Research Council, Sultan Qaboos from USD 0.03 to USD 0.06/kWhe, and further
University (SQU) and MEDRC, and as an exam- price decreases are expected. These systems do
ple desalination plants using concentrated solar not include storage and are not designed to be
power (CSP) technologies have been evaluated for dispatchable. Utility-scale PV systems at a scale of
Wilayat Duqum in Oman. hundreds of megawatts are situated in arid regi-
ons with high insolation and relatively flat, barren
The MENA region has vast solar energy potential. land. While favourable local factors, including
Developing solar-powered desalination techno- financing, have enabled this pricing, the potential
logies, producing energy from the brine water to use this technology cost-effectively, if intermitt-
salinity and reducing the energy required for ently, to desalinate water with a near-zero carbon
desalination should be a top priority in MENA footprint is promising (Lienhard et al., 2016).
countries. R&D partnership and investments to
identify optimal technical solutions and products Furthermore, attention was paid by researchers in
for desalination and cogeneration powered by RE the last years to two different options for possible
could improve the region’s social, environmental coupling between the solar system and a desalina-
and economic condition. tion unit (PV/RO and CSP/MED), to:
56
› accurately estimate the production cost of

desalinated water; including ways to single
out the possible factors to fill the gap between
the production cost by solar and conventional
technologies; and
› address other fundamental aspects of a solar

system such as the initial investment and
required area.
Overall water production cost is influenced by

several local factors, like the market status of solar
systems, financing conditions, labour and pre-
treatment cost, fuel and electricity price. The
selection of the appropriate solar desalination
technology (Solar stills, Solar Collectors, Solar
Pond, and PV with its three types: Stand-alone
systems, Grid-connected systems, and Hybrid
systems) depends on several factors. These in-
clude plant size, feed water salinity, remoteness,
availability of grid electricity, technical infrastruc-
ture and the type of solar technology available.
57
IV. Case studies and

innovative projects from MENA
Solar desalination projects implemented in the › The Layyah plant in Sharjah (UAE) integrates RO
MENA region at a small scale: with MSF and MED thermal systems (Almulla,
2005).
› Autonomous Desalination System Concepts
for Sea Water and Brackish Water (BW) in Rural In Dubai also, solar-powered RO desalination is
Areas with REs – ADIRA project (2003 – 2007): expected to become the new trend to produce
Four PV-RO systems have been installed subse- water and meet renewable energy targets. The
quently in 4 locations of Morocco, where feed UAE depends on desalination for its potable water,
water was brackish water (BW) from inland with a water production capacity of 2.14 Mm3/d.
wells (salinity 2.5 – 8.7 g/L). Such systems pro- But now, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority
duce 5 m3/d (PV capacity: 8 kWp), sufficient for (DEWA) is working on powering its desalinated water
100 people, covering their food and sanitation plants with solar power to generate 1.15 Mm3/d
needs; by 2030. By using lower cost renewable energy to
power desalination plants, Dubai’s main utility will
› Autonomous PV-RO unit in Tunisia (since save USD 13 bn between now and 2030, according
2006): The village of Ksar Ghilène first African to DEWA.
location with 2 years’ operating PV-RO system.
This project targeted 300 inhabitants with no PV-RO will now become the new trend as DEWA
access to the electric grid (nearest at 150 km) aims for 100 % renewable energy desalination in
or fresh water. The system desalinated raw Dubai. This supports their efforts to boost water
water with a salinity of 3.5 g/L, and operated production in the UAE.
more than 3,100 h producing 6,000 m3 of drin-
king water in 27 months; In this regard, it is worth to mention the Ghantoot
case study. In 2016, Suez launched its pilot 100 m3/d
› King Abdullah Initiative for Solar desalination - RO desalination plant in Ghantoot, Abu Dhabi that
KSA: The initiative is expected to reduce pro- showcases newer solutions to optimise energy at
duction costs of desalinated water from USD every stage of the water desalination process. The
0.67 – 1.47/m3 to USD 0.27 – 0.40/m3. It is the new technologies were expected to lay the ground
world‘s first large-scale desalination plant to be for the implementation of cost-competitive large-
powered by solar energy in Saudi Arabia; scale seawater desalination plants powered by
renewable energy in the UAE and beyond.
› Ben Guerdan solar powered BWRO in Tunisia:
with a capacity of 1,800 m3/d, in operation The idea has been to create an environment in
since 2013; which desalination components could be tweaked,
tested and pushed. On a live, large scale plant, this
› A solar–MED plant built in Umm Al Nar, Abu- is not possible as any equipment failure inevitably
Dhabi has a desalination capacity of 120 m3/d. leads to potential downtime. Ghantoot became a
The thermal energy required for MED is provi- desalination expert’s playground – a chance to play
ded by solar thermal collectors; and reconfigure components treating challenging
high salinity waters. Pilot technologies from four
58
companies were chosen. Later on, French compa- create the osmotic pressure needed to desalinate
ny Mascara Engineering joined the site as the fifth the water. Waste heat causes phase separation of
company. This latest addition trial was designed to the ‘draw solute’, producing water and a concen-
test off-grid, solar-powered desalination for remo- trate draw solute.
te, rural locations.
Spanish firm Abengoa has been operating a more
Riding on what it considers success in Abu Dhabi, extensive operation at the site, producing 1,060 m3/d
the company has now signed projects in Tunisia of water. A hybrid process consists of RO mem-
and Bora Bora in the Pacific Islands. branes in combination with a membrane distil-
lation system. The aim is to optimise membrane
In Tunisia, a 1,000 m3/d plant has been confirmed distillation (MD) to treat brine.
with Tunisian water utility SONEDE, with 50 % of
the USD 1.3 M project cost fronted by Mascara Meanwhile, the third French company on the site –
and hope that the remaining 50 % will be pro- SUEZ – has been testing dissolved air flotation (DAF)
vided by partner Masdar. This project will use a and membrane pretreatment adapted for challen-
hybrid approach – so water filtration is powered ging Gulf conditions, together with a double pass
by solar panels during the daytime but reverts to RO system. The company has also cited a 3 – 3.6
grid power during the night. Meanwhile, a sepa- kWh/m3 energy usage but is also working on a
rate solar-powered RO unit is also currently being second trial, using liquid-to-liquid ion exchange
shipped to Bora Bora, a small South Pacific Island. resin technology to increase the volume of water
This will be a smaller, 80 m3/d demonstration pro- produced without raising seawater intake.
ject designed to test the system in a very remote
location, without grid access. For water, Masdar says it plans to co-create special
purpose vehicles (SPVs) with the Ghantoot partners
Unlike the Tunisian project, which will be a grid / to bid on desalination projects.
solar hybrid, Bora Bora will be purely off-grid
designed to test system reliability in very remote, One of the efforts led by MEDRC to boost innova-
challenging conditions. tion in desalination sector is the Oman Humanita-
rian Desalination Challenge (Box 1).
US firm Trevi System has a much lower energy
target of 1 kWh/m3, and it achieved 1.3 kWh/m3 The MENA countries have no choice other than
to 1.4 kWh/m3. This trial ended by April 2017 and investing in innovation, and as far as desalination is
consists of a 50 m3/d forward osmosis (FO) instal- impacting its water security, they will need to invest
lation using a thermos-solute draw solution to in the localization of desalination technologies.
Box 1
The Oman Humanitarian Desalination Challenge is a global water prize worth USD 700 000 for the
individual or team that delivers a hand-held, stand-alone, low-cost, desalination device suitable for
short-term use and rapid deployment in the event of a humanitarian crisis. There are no commercial
59
products on the market that meet this challenge. While inexpensive marked-based water purifica-
tion products can be purchased, they are unable to remove salt. The Challenge is a joint initiative
led by MEDRC and The Research Council in Oman (TRC) with funding provided by the Sultan Qaboos
Higher Center of Culture and Science. The Challenge looks to stimulate innovation and technical
performance in small scale desalination technology. It will be held once a year for four years, or until
the Prize is won.
In parallel and in support of the Oman Humanitarian Desalination Challenge, MEDRC are partnering
with USAID on a second track of funding. This will support a new Desalination Challenge Research
Call supporting pathway research, aimed at the delivery of an innovative family sized desalination
unit. The funding aims to deliver an innovative family-sized (120 liters of water per day) brackish de-
salination device as a precursor or earlier generation to a hand-held device that the Oman Humani-
tarian Desalination Challenge Prize looks for. MEDRC will award up to four Pathway Research Grants
up to a maximum of USD 90,000 each in 2020. Applications will be evaluated and awarded based on
their ability to show how innovations can lead to meeting the Challenge Prize criteria. Down-scaling
existing large-scale reverse osmosis and electrodialysis technologies will not be considered innova-
tive and so will not be awarded funding.
www.desalinationchallenge.com
60
Desalination as a
climate change
adaptation option
Desalination as a climate change adaption option
I. Desalination as
adaptation option
Rising temperatures will put intense pressure on coastal regions (Gerstetter et al., 2012). In Spain for
crops and already scarce water resources, poten- instance, to face climate change and its impacts on
tially increasing migration and the risk of conflict. water resources, adaptation measures included
In order to cope with those impacts, adaptation increasing desalination capacity mainly in the sout-
will be required. Whereas climate change mitiga- hern areas where the agriculture activity is intensi-
tion has a global focus, climate change adaptation ve and the water scarcity is acute.
needs careful tailored local planning.
On the other hand, adaptation measures may
One way in which policies can contribute to success- hinder mitigation, e. g., desalination or pumping
ful adaptation is by enhancing the overall capacity of (ground) water for drinking water and irrigation
of people to adapt to climatic change. Measures purposes requires energy, possibly generated from
that improve the socio-economic conditions of fossil fuels. Increasing water use as a result of cli-
poorer people also improve the baseline capacity mate change leads to aggravating droughts that can
for people to autonomously cope and adapt to trigger forest fires or wetland destruction leading to
changes in their environment. Such measures can loss of stored carbon. Moreover, it may increase the
also reduce or mitigate conflicts by making re- demand for water, leading to a negative feedback
sources available for conservation or substitution of aggravating drought. Improved water manage-
(imported or artificially generated, e. g. desalinated ment, in contrast, can improve agricultural practice,
water) of scarce resources. Measures which increase help to store carbon through forestation, maintain
the adaptive capacity of rural households include wetlands and reduce heat spells (UNECE, 2015).
income generation schemes, insurance schemes for
climatic risks such as drought or floods, or broader Examples from the region include (Kloos et al., 2013):
social security schemes and social.
› Coastal desalination – Adapting to water scarcity:
Therefore, desalination plants and irrigation with Droughts in the 1990s, increased stress on
properly treated wastewater are considered good aquifer resources and increased urban water
climate change adaptation options, which will make use. Desalination plants are still in the process
up for the lack of natural water availability. But it of being implemented, but are a policy-attempt
is not restricted to that, we can also consider raise to adapt to water scarcity in the region which
awareness about water scarcity to facilitate adop- could reduce water and therefore human
tion of unconventional techniques such as water insecurity;
reuse and desalination, in parallel with improve-
ment of infrastructure efficiency and reduction of › Red Sea Dead Sea Water Conveyance: The
consumption. jointly managed rehabilitation of the dwindling
state of the Dead Sea can mitigate cross border
In addition, infrastructure investments that ensure water scarcity crisis and increase multilateral
the sustainable and fair distribution of water as cooperation. The multi-lateral project aims
well as water use efficiency are needed. Desalina- to construct a pipeline that would transport
tion plants using properly treated wastewater and 1.8 billion cubic meters of water from the Red
taking care of environmental impacts may become Sea to the Dead Sea. The freshwater obtained
a useful option for some case studies located in from the desalination plant would be used to
62
augment the water supplies of Jordan, Israel raising farmer incomes. The demonstration
and the Palestinian Territories. It is an ambiti- projects therefore made it possible to define
ous infrastructure project to connect the Red “low-regret” adaptation measures that can be
Sea and the Dead Sea, in order to counteract included in the strategic adaptation documents
the shrinking of the Dead Sea, produce addi- (NAPAs and National Adaptation Plans) develo-
tional drinking water by the means of desalina- ped by the countries sharing NWSAS (OSS, 2013).
tion and produce energy through hydropower
development;
› North-Western Sahara Aquifer System (NWSAS),

shared by Algeria, Libya and Tunisia: Being
located in an arid and semi-arid area, the
NWSAS basin is threatened by climate change
with a probable temperature rise between 2.5
to 4.5°C and an expected decrease in precipita-
tion by 5 to 20 % by the end of the twenty-first
century, as well as an increase in the occurren-
ce of extreme events. The expected impacts
of climate change are likely to increase the
existing stress on the aquifer system. The
Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS) supports
the three countries in better understanding
and managing the NWSAS groundwater re-
sources. In this regard, OSS carried out dem-
onstration activities in six pilot projects in the
three countries from July 2010 to December
2013, with the objective of providing the
NWSAS users and policymakers with efficient
solutions for increasing water productivity
while ensuring the efficiency of investments,
the improvement of farmers’ income and the
conservation of the NWSAS basin. A set of
techniques have been adopted, one of them
is aimed to give value to alternative water re-
sources through the desalination of brackish
water (Medenine-Tunisia) and to make better
use of geothermal water (El Hamma, Gabes,
Tunisia). In all pilot projects, solutions for more
efficient use of water were introduced, for
example, localized irrigation systems combined
with sustainable agricultural practices such as
the introduction of adapted varieties and inter-
cropping. The pilot projects were successful in
showing that more water-efficient agriculture
helps to reduce the risks of saltwater intrusion
and salinization, loss of artesian pressure, the
depletion of natural outlets and the lowering
of the water table, while at the same time
63
II. Desalination in policies
When it comes to adaptation policies, they have not the effects of installing several desalination plants
yet been properly developed at national level in the along the coastlines. Moreover, the European
MENA region, while at the moment few national Union, who contributed substantially to fund
and local water management plans take climate Spanish desalination plants in the 2000s largely
change impacts adequately into account. The mix for environmental reasons but also internal geo-
of existing approaches and instruments to address political factors, continues to provide financial
adaptation of water resources to climate change support for the construction of these plants.
impacts and in particular to floods and droughts in-
clude a wide range of options from water demand Early in 2017 the largest desalination plant in the
and supply-side measures and proactive policies to Gaza strip, funded by the EU, was inaugurated. It
engineered solutions, options provided by ecosys- is also true. However, that desalination was not
tems’ services and response to damage measures. mentioned in the Water Framework Directive as an
Desalination is therefore an alternative of climate alternative and that other policy documents such as
change adaptation on the supply side. the Council of the European Union Conclusions on
Sustainable Water Management (2016) emphasise
Desalination as a potential solution to water scarcity water reuse above desalination.
has been for long time controversial, because many
policy makers and policy documents advocate this Moreover, private participation in the MENA
option while others show more skepticism and region began with desalination projects in the first
prefer other solutions. Since desalination is present decade of the 21st century, exemplified by emble-
in the water supply mix of an increasing number of matic programs such as the one developed by
countries, promoting the debate on its merits and the government of Algeria and led by Sonatrach.
problems not just from a technical point of view Saudi Arabia seeks to increase the proportion of
but including also social, geopolitical and environ- desalinated water produced by private operators
mental dimensions, is relevant and timely, and between 16 – 52 % by 2020 and to expand drinking
more so when the progression of large scale plants water and sewerage services by 42 – 70 % of its
appears to depend on political factors. cities (Revolve, 2017).
During the last few years, desalination has appea- The question now is how desalination can inter-
red in several policies and strategy documents and sect with other alternatives to provide more just
recommendations at national, regional levels and and sustainable water policies at all scales from
even in Europe. local to global? Moreover, how does desalination
relate to climate change discourses and policies
In 2012, for example, it was cited in a document both in mitigation and adaptation?
on scenarios for the protection of water resources
in Europe (Ad de Roo et al., 2012), the Joint Re- When it comes to climate change adaptation, among
search Center of the European Union introduced the measures which should be handled with care at
a so-called desalination scenario under which the the level of increasing supply is desalination, which
Water Exploitation Index or Environmental Flows may be legitimate if no other adaptation measures
(helping to satisfy the requirements of the water are feasible. However, we need to highlight the high
framework directive - WFD) showed noticeable im- energy consumption, adverse environmental effects,
provements mainly in Spain and Italy. It estimates and low social acceptance as the downsides.
64
Desalination is rapidly ascending worldwide both much attention. However, interest on the social,
as a source of freshwater and as an adaptation political, geostrategic, and territorial dimensions of
measure to climate change-related water stress. desalination is developing in a variety of geogra-
Although proponents of desalination are cautious phical settings such as the MENA region; as well as
about its potential to solve many of the water prob- several EU member states located in the Mediterra-
lems of the world, current technological advances, nean basin (Spain, Malta, Cyprus, and Greece).
especially the decrease in energy costs; the possi-
bility of using renewable sources; the improvement As a matter of fact, in several countries, such as the
of membrane technologies, and new ways of dis- Gulf States, Spain or Israel, desalination constitutes
posing of brines thereby reducing environmental a key pillar of water policy. From the early social
impacts, pave the way to perhaps the ultimate science research on this topic research, a picture of
“technological fix” in water. desalination is beginning to emerge that challenges
the favourable image presented by the more techni-
The brine is characterised by high salt concentra- cal approaches. Beyond the concerns about energy
tion, hardness and containing heavy metals and costs and environmental impacts, issues that are
chemical compounds used in the process (anti- being examined by social scientists are, for instance,
scalant, cleaning agent, etc.), and higher temperature the financing of desalination plants; the sometimes
than ambient (employed in thermal-based processes negative reactions of citizens to this new resource;
such as multi-stage flash distillation “MSF”). the health dimensions of desalted water; the
creation of relative scarcities given the higher costs
Figures on recent installed capacity around the with particular impacts on farmers and poor urban
world and on rates of expansion confirm the dwellers; the possibility of capturing cheaper water
momentum of desalination and its promise to resources by mining or large agricultural compa-
overcome the social, political, territorial and nies; the perpetuation of the cornucopian imaginary
environmental problems of traditional hydraulic (for those who can afford it) of plentiful resources
solutions and contribute to the emancipatory making conservation needless; the geopolitical
power of technology in ways that conventional implications of strengthening through desalination;
solutions such as dams, reservoirs and water the reworking of the food-water-energy nexus in
transfers are increasingly unable to achieve. some regions of the world, the opportunities for
capital investment after the exhaustion of other
According to its proponents, desalination not only large water works, and the reinforcement of the
taps an inexhaustible resource but also has the attraction of people to coastal areas as well as the
potential of effectively removing water from poli- more well-known of environmental impacts (marine
tical, territorial and ecological conflict. It is, there- biota, higher carbon footprint if energy is derived
fore, an alternative with multiple “wins” and few from fossil fuel power plants).
losses at least in comparison to those of the more
traditional alternatives. Thus desalination has been On the other hand, desalination can eventually
an option favoured by the EU at least in some contribute to making treated wastewater drink
member states which, as in the case of Spain, have able again thus reversing water flows, which has
received EU funding (more than USD 1.1 bn) for profound implications in the architecture of hydro
building desalination plants. Moreover, the EU also social cycles.
finances desalination plants in sensitive areas. In
January 2017, for example, a large plant built with Regarding the more problematic aspects of desa-
EU funds was inaugurated in the Gaza Strip. lination, high energy consumption is probably the
main challenge. The choice between renewables,
While desalination occupies an expanding niche in nuclear and fossil fuels will depend on technology
water-related scientific and technical research, from and cost but also on the fact that desalination
a social science point of view it has not received plants need a steady source of power which may
65
not be guaranteed by renewables alone since the According to the Global Water Intelligence Unit, in
latter (solar, wind) tend to fluctuate according to 2010, overall water reuse from treated wastewater
meteorological conditions. surpassed desalination and since 2013 demand for
reuse with tertiary treatment stays ahead of desa-
Hence, it is not surprising that the nexus desalina- lination. However, water reuse is mostly addressed
tion-renewable energy occupies a central place in to agricultural, landscaping and environmental
much of the technical research on this resource. functions, and therefore, it does not represent a
On the other hand, the environmental impacts of strict direct competitor for desalination.
using fossil (carbon footprint) or nuclear (waste,
among other problems) are pervasive and difficult When it comes to investments related to water infra-
to solve. At the same time, a great deal of research structure including desalination plants, it should be
is devoted to increasing the efficiency of the desali- linked to vulnerability assessments as a prerequisite.
nation process to reduce energy requirements. So water infrastructure investments should be
made “climate-proof”, i. e. it should be ensured
For example, the challenge of reducing energy that they will still be viable under changing climatic
consumption from 3 kWh/m3 to 1 kWh/m3 of conditions (Martina Flörke et al., 2011).
water is targeted by the EU Innovation Action
„NMP-24-2015 - Low-energy solutions for drinking As an example of regional strategies related to
water production“ (2013) under the Horizon 2020. desalination, the 5+5 (including Algeria, Morocco,
One of the funded projects attempt to develop Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania from the MENA
Electrodialysis (ED) to provide safe, affordable, region) Western Mediterranean water strategy
and cost-competitive drinking water, using less desalination highlighted as a technology offering a
than half the energy required by state-of-the-art huge opportunity to mobilise resources in count-
brackish water RO plants. ries where chronic water scarcity strongly limits
conventional resources availability. This strategy
Another funded project aims at Microbial Desali- (EMWIS, 2015) insisted on the necessity of:
nation Cells (MDC) to treat wastewater and gene-
rate energy for desalination. MDCs can produce › Promoting the use of more efficient technolo-
around 1.8 kWh of bioelectricity from 1 m3 of gies that also minimize environmental impacts
wastewater. Such energy can be directly used to as well as the utilisation of renewable energies
remove the salt content in seawater without ex- in the desalination plants;
ternal energy input. The latter example also shows
the synergies but also the competition between › Encouraging the development of desalination
desalination and treated wastewater. That is said, programs from a legal and political scope;
MDC is still under development at lab-scale. Hence,
the scale-up issue is needed even for more advan- › Allowing for private sector investments to
ced processes in development such as pressure adapt to the rapidly increasing demand.
retarded osmosis (PRO) or reverse electrodialysis
(RED), which could be coupled with conventional
desalination processes (Amy et al., 2017, Ghaffour
et al., 2015 and McGinnis et al., 2018). The PRO
and RED technologies can harvest some of the
chemical energy that is present in the highly con-
centrated brine that is left over from the RO. If
managed properly, this type of integrated process
can lead to an overall reduction in the energy
required to desalinate water (Geise, 2018).
66
III. Desalination for agriculture
One of the main challenges in MENA coastal agri- its salinity. However, it can still be an attractive
cultural areas is the growing salinity of ground- option for sustainable agriculture if used within
water, with water tables falling throughout the specific constraints.
country because of seawater intrusion and the
overexploitation of aquifers. This has pushed far- Desalination remains an excellent technical option
mers in many countries such as in Oman, to use to increase the availability of freshwater both in
brackish water desalination to irrigate their crops. coastal areas with limited resources and in areas
where brackish waters – such as saline ground-
Depending upon the desired quality of desalinated water, drainage water and treated wastewater –
water, the running cost of chemicals and membra- are available. Greenhouse and hydroponic farmers
nes is relatively low and costs of desalination can are beginning to use RO to desalinate and purify
be regulated with the optimization of the seasonal irrigation water for greenhouse use (the RO pro-
crop water requirements. Moreover, inland desa- duct water tends to be lower in bacteria and nema-
lination usually uses brackish water where salinity todes, which also helps to control plant diseases).
level (about 10,000 mg/L) is much lower than that Small RO plants have been built in rural areas
of seawater; hence the cost of desalinating brackish where there is no other water supply option. An
water will be lower than that of seawater. increasing number of Omani farmers are changing
the irrigation water supply from a contaminated
In spite of this development, the costs of desalina- surface water canal source to an RO-desalinated
ted water are still too high for the full use of this brackish groundwater source.
resource in irrigated agriculture, with the excep-
tion of intensive horticulture for high-value cash If we consider the example of Spain, it provides a
crops, such as vegetables and flowers (mainly in significant example of the application of desalina-
greenhouses), grown in coastal areas (where safe ted water in irrigation. Spain has more than 300
disposal is easier than in inland areas). treatment plants (about 40 % of the total number
of existing plants) and 22.4 % of the total desali-
In Gulf countries, Kuwait uses 13 % of its desalina- nated water is used for agriculture. Most of these
tion capacity for agriculture. Saudi Arabia uses only plants process brackish water (only 10 % of the
0.5 % of its desalination capacity for agricultural total desalinated water for agriculture originates
purposes. Bahrain uses 0.4 %, Qatar 0.1 % (Al Jabri from seawater) and are located in coastal areas or
and Ahmed, 2017). within 60 km of the sea (FAO, 2004). In this country,
small and medium-sized brackish-water desalina-
If we consider the example of Oman, due to the tion plants, with a capacity of less than 1,000 m3/d,
increased level of soil and water salinization along are common because they adapt better to indivi-
Al-Batinah region coast, an increasing number of dual farmer requirements and to the existing hy-
farmers are using small-scale desalination units for draulic structures.
producing irrigation water. Desalination technology
remains still an expensive option for agriculture, There is no exclusive use of desalinated water for
and it has environmental challenges that includes irrigation. Spanish farmers mix it with low-quality
energy requirements, water quality, and disposal surface and groundwater in efforts to reduce the
means of rejected brine which end up in many ca- cost of desalination. Farmers own the desalination
ses by contaminating groundwater and increasing plants and their agriculture is practices within their
67
organised societies to compete with local and inter- 0.46 – 1.32/m3 with an average of USD 0.55/m3. (Al
national markets. The Spanish government has Jabri et al., 2019).
clear institutional framework that defines the use
of desalination for agriculture. Farmers in Spain are One option to reduce the costs of desalination for
able to maximize net returns through well-defined agriculture associated with desalination for agricul-
marketing schemes. On the contrary, farmers in ture is to mix desalinated water with less low-quali-
Oman use small size desalination units to sustain ty groundwater and follow certain irrigation deficit
low-income field crops. schemes to irrigate high-value crops.
Most of inland desalination plants (80 %) in Oman The cost of desalination of brackish water for agri-
are RO type of small capacities (below 10,000 m3/d). culture in Spain is optimized through the utilization
More than 50 % are desalinating brackish water or of pricing schemes for energy. Spain has six pricing
inland water (TDS 3,000 mg/L – <20,000 mg/L) (GWI, schemes depending on time of the day, week, and
2018). year. They operate their desalination plants during
the low-demand periods that correspond to the lo-
Part of Omani farmers have greenhouses where west price scheme. Furthermore, costs in Spain are
“classical” crops, such as cucumber and tomatoes, reduced further by mixing desalinated water with
are grown. With such low-income field crops, that other sources of water, such as low-quality surface
indicates that they are not business oriented and and ground waters. Energy-pricing schemes do not
most farms are meant to sustain existing agricultu- exist in the Arabian Gulf countries, where the cost
ral practices among other purposes. Upon secu- is fixed. Furthermore, energy is subsidized in Oman
ring a new source of fresh water, farmers moved and farmers pay only 30 % of the original (total)
forward to add more facilities to their farms; mainly cost (Zekri et al., 2014).
residential buildings (small resorts and / or swim-
ming pools) or animal-raising facilities (Al Jabri et On the other hand, using seawater desalination for
al., 2019). irrigation of rentable crops as tomato and berries
and other vegetables crops could be a judicious so-
The cost of desalination from small-size units in lution to continue producing horticultural products
Oman (without electricity subsidy = USD 0.65/m3) is and saving water.
63 % more expensive than what farmers are paying
in Spain (USD 0.40/m3). Moreover, farmers in the Pumping cost for example in Souss Massa region in
Sultanate pay more for the water “bill” due to the Morocco is about USD 0.3, and the average desali-
fact that crop water requirements are higher than nation cost is equal to USD 0.5 with a little change
that of Spain for the surveyed crops (22,000 versus depending on desalination (Hirich et al., 2016).
5,600 m3/ha. y). While all farmers in Spain mix the Half of the capacity of Agadir desalination plant in
desalinated water with other sources of low -quality construction now will be used to respond to Souss
water, 78 % of surveyed farmers by Al Jabri and Massa region needs of irrigation water. However,
his team (Al Jabri et al., 2019) in Oman use purely this is seawater desalination and not brackish wa-
desalinated water to irrigate low-income-value ter desalination.
crops. All these factors contribute to make farming
using desalinated water much less profitable than Brackish water desalination is also used in Tunisia
in Spain. Moreover, Spain uses medium-size central in some regions to improve the water quality of
desalination plant with high recovery rates compa- irrigation water. This is the case for example in
red to low rates from small units that are used in Mahdia. In 2016 authorities set up a pilot project
Oman. The “economy of scale” and high recovery for a desalination unit for agriculture in Mahdia.
rates greatly reduce the cost of desalination. The
economic analysis shows that, depending on unit The EU-funded project aimed at reducing the sali-
size, the cost of desalination ranges between USD nity from 5.8 g/L to 0.2 g/L. Equipped with a 600 m3
68
water reservoir, the USD 5 M project is used by 60

farmers to irrigate greenhouse crops. The project is
capable of irrigating three times more land volume
than traditional drip methods.
The assessment of the appropriateness of desali-

nation for agriculture should be based on the net
economic returns of agricultural products as well as
environmental costs.
Therefore, the feasibility of the technology for

agriculture in Oman should be explored on such
concerns. In an international workshop on desali-
nation for agriculture held in Oman in 2018 (OWS,
2018), it was recommended to the farmers to set
up joint central desalination plants to provide
water for agriculture according to the hydrological
characteristics of groundwater aquifers to reduce
energy consumption, O&M costs and optimize the
management of return water, through cooperation
between farmers and the private sector to build
these plants by design, build, operate and own
system and push for increased use of treated water
in agriculture, and facilitate this for farmers while
taking into consideration tariff reduction.
Among the recommendations also, to start introdu-

cing industries based on wastewater from desalina-
tion plants (high saline) as they are critical to mini-
mising environmental impacts and safe disposal of
the brine, as well as their economic benefits. It was
also recommended to prepare a public database
available to researchers and decision-makers that
includes all data related to the number of agricul-
tural desalination units, their capacities, sites and
agricultural products produced and their efficiency
and their disposal of the brine (OWS, 2018).
69
IV. Public-private partnership (PPP)

in desalination projects
The involvement of the private sector in providing a contractor for construction. The client pays
freshwater has proven to be a successful approach, for the project during the construction period
able to provide the necessary capital, networks, and takes responsibility for operations;
technology, experience and human resources.
Public–private partnerships (PPPs) have been much › Design-build-operate (DBO): The client requi-
discussed during the last decade in the MENA ring the desalination plant tenders both cons-
region and worldwide, mainly its aspects related truction and operating and maintenance (O&M)
to the institutional and regulatory frameworks for contracts as a single package. Typically the two
private investment, market risk, off-taker risk, tariff contracts of EPC and O&M are signed separa-
structure and desalinated water charging, construc- tely, and in some cases, responsibilities on the
tion / technical / operational risk, financing structure, two contracts can be split between different
credit enhancements, environmental risk, etc. members of the bidding consortium;
The need for a market-based economy and an › Build-operate-transfer (BOT): This type of
expanded role of regional banks has also been delivery model involves the participation of a
raised. Nowadays, many countries rely on the private project development company in the
private sector for additional funding in investment project, which owns the assets. Other names
projects. for this delivery model, but with the same basic
arrangements, are design-build-own-operate-
Desalination projects are procured using diffe- transfer (DBOOT) and build-own-operate-
rent types of delivery models. These models vary transfer (BOOT). In all of these models, the
depending on whether project financing is a public assets are to be transferred to the client at the
agency or involves a private entity. Other factors end of the contract period, which spans on
that can affect the choice of procurement model average 20 years;
are project location, the size of the plant, the proj-
ect risk profile, owner’s experience with similar › Build-own-operate (BOO): This model is similar
projects, the client, and the source of project fun- to BOT but without asset transfer. Indepen-
ding – loans, grants, bonds, equity or a mixture of dent water projects (IWP) are included in this
these funding sources. The main project delivery category;
models are:
› Independent water and power projects (IWPP):
› Plant purchase: The client uses this delivery This is basically a BOT contract type, which
model when it wants to purchase the plant refers to the procurement of combined desali-
and retain ownership of the facility. This nation and power projects. IWPP contracts are
category includes engineering, procurement typically adopted in the Gulf region.
and construction (EPC), design-build (DB) and
design-bid-build (DBB) delivery models. For The main contract models used up today are: EPC,
all these models, typically the client appoints DBO (Design-build-operate) and BOOT (Build-ope-
an engineer to prepare drawings and project rate-transfer). Other variants are DBB, Construction
specifications, which are then put out to bid to Manager at Risk and Alliance.
70
The build own operate transfer (BOOT) project a water pricing policy and incentives, investment in
delivery method has become the preferred method research and development, and integrated water
for municipalities and public utilities worldwide as resources management.
it allows cost-effective transfer to the private sector
of the risks associated with the costs of desalinated Other constraints relate to the public perception
water. Some of these risks include: predicting plant of private-sector involvement in PPPs. Public con-
performance due to variable intake-water quality; cerns regard potential price increases, inappropriate
permitting challenges; startup and commissioning; business practices, and insufficient information
fast-changing membrane technology and equip- dissemination. The effect of water quality on socio-
ment market; and limited public-sector experience economic growth has not been well quantified, and
with the operation of extensive seawater desalina- human resources and related organisations are
tion facilities (Voutchkov, 2004). still at a nascent stage.
However, there are infrastructure constraints on All the above issues pose current challenges to
the application of PPPs. For instance, desalination the sustainable application of desalination for
normally requires long-distance transport of desa- supplying both potable water and irrigation water.
linated water to its site of use. Furthermore, there However, we can mention some successful case
are institutional constraints that need to be ad- studies such as Agadir desalination plant in
dressed in concert with PPPs, such as establishing Morocco (Box 2).
Box 2
Agadir desalination plant, Morocco

The Agadir desalination project is part of Spanish operator Abengoa‘s strategic plan to solve water
supply problems in those parts of the world most affected by water shortages. Moreover, it will be
the largest capacity desalination plant in the region. A total of USD 92 M in financing has been ar-
ranged with a consortium of local banks led by Banque Marocaine du Commerce Extérieur (BMCE),
71
ensuring a high degree of integration and participation with the local business and financial sector.
Furthermore, this is the first project that the National Power and Drinking Water Office (ONEE) has
developed under a public-private partnership (PPP) system, putting Abengoa at the forefront of this
model in Morocco.
The project is valued at USD 0.41 bn in its two components (drinking water and farm water) and
ultimately aims to secure the drinking water supply of the Grand Agadir region and provide water
for high value-added irrigated agriculture in the Chtouka area.
Overall, the project involves the construction of a desalination plant with a 275,000 m3/d total pro-
duction capacity, which will make it the most significant plant designed for drinking water and irriga-
tion. The contract signed provides for the possible capacity expansion to up to 450,000 m3/d.
In addition to the initial USD 0.27 bn investment for the drinking water component of the desali-
nation plant, ONEE will dedicate additional investments of USD 62 M to: the installation of 44 km
of pipes, the construction of a drinking water tank with a capacity of 35,000 m3, the installation of
three high voltage power lines measuring over 55 km from the source station of Tiznit to the solar
complex Noor Ouarzazate, and the construction of two pumping stations and two loading tanks.
For the drinking water component, the seawater desalination project is expected to secure the sup-
ply of drinking water for 2.3 million inhabitants by 2030, 20 % of whom live in rural areas.
The implementation site has been chosen to allow a zero impact. The infrastructure has been desig-
ned to control the brine disposal through the use of modern technology. Marine cartography and
mapping have been applied to minimize the impacts and risks as much as possible.
This large-scale project also presents the potential of being operated by wind power to meet the
demand for water for domestic use, in addition to irrigation water needs in the Agadir area. At the
same time, the project will contribute to the development of the region’s main economic drivers, the
agricultural and tourism sectors, and the conservation of local aquifers, therefore preventing their
over-exploitation.
72
V. Desalination costing
Experts usually talk about the different desalina- of the real cost of desalination projects overall
tion processes, their pros and cons, the innovative the world. Researchers and scientists are starting
technology, the desalination capacities. However, to work on this critical issue to be able to trace
it’s rare to find those who discuss detailed cost and analyse the cost of this broad field taking into
indicators that could allow a real benchmarking account so many parameters.
Figure 24: Seawater desalination whole elements
Capacity Nameplate Subsurface intake Flocculation

Reliability Surface intake Sedimentation
Intake Source water quality Disolved air flotation
Combined intake Diatomaceous earth filter
Intake type Co-located intake Two-stage, granular media
Single-stage, granular media
Pump Vertical pressure filter
Feed water quality Conventional filtration Media filtration Horizontal pressure filter
Cartridge filtration Gravity filter
Pretreatment Capacity
Submerged MF/UF
Pretreatment type Membrane filtration Pressure MF/UF
8” diameter/16” diameter-
Membrane type Hollow fiber/spiral wound/combo
RO system Recovery Number and size of individual RO trains

Number of vessels per RO trains
Configuration Number of elements per vessel
Multi stage number of passes
HP and/or Booster pump
Permeate blending and throttling
Concentrate recycle
8” diameter/16” diameter-
High pressure pump Hollow fiber/spiral wound/combo
RO system Energy (pressure) recovery device Pelton wheel

Turbocharger
Renewable energy (solar, wind, etc.) Isobaric
Product water quality

Remineralisation, pH adjustment
Permeate water Disinfection Pretreat residuals tretment/disposal
Boron removal Shoreline discharge
RO system Storage Blending (ybrid) Nozzle diffuseer
Wastewater effluent blending
Concentrate Blended with cooling water
Source: Pankratz 2015
73
Desalination costs have decreased by more than for thermal and membrane desalination processes
half over the last 25 years thanks to improvements (Figure 25). In many cases, energy cost can reach
in technology and energy efficiency. The cost of almost 60 % of the OPEX.
producing 1 m3 of treated water currently ranges
from USD 0.5 to USD 0.9. Saudi Arabia and the A comparison of the total cost of the RO and MSF
UAE are among the cheapest places to desalinate technologies is given in Table 14 (Al-Karaghouli,
water, given their comparatively low energy prices 2011).
and the economies of scale at their large facilities.
Increased use of renewable energies to run the The critical factors that influence policy / decision
desalination process may make it even cheaper. makers for appropriate technology selection are
In fact, Dubai Electricity & Water reported in 2020 the total investment and produced water costs, the
a $0.306/m3 water cost for 545,000 m3/d Hassyan type of project contract, and other parameters such
SWRO when online in 2023. This is world’s lowest
water levelized tariff so far.
Figure 25: Distribution of costs in both membrane
The overall cost of desalination can be divided and thermal desalination processes
mainly into investment or capital cost (CAPEX) and
maintenance-operation cost (OPEX).
Membrane
CAPEX involves land, edifices and equipment, as

well as transportation cost, insurance, construc-
tion, legal fees and unforeseen costs, while OPEX Other
Capital
is divided into energy cost, maintenance, repairs, O&M*
~33 %
personnel/staff, spare parts, and reconstruction ~33 %
when required.
Energy
If we want to go deeper in analysing the CAPEX ~33 %
and OPEX, we need to understand each part and
a single component of the process. In the case of
RO, for instance, we need to consider the different
factors intervening during the intake, pretreatment,
RO system, energy saving and the post-treatment
Thermal (MED)
(Figure 24).
The current RO desalination is expensive because

of the high energy requirements for equipment, Other
24 % Capital
such as pumps, and piping, as well as intake, 31 %
pretreatment, outfall and pressure vessel desalina-
tion stages. Hence, Mr. on-going R&D is continuing
for RO desalination, especially for seawater and Energy
brackish water sources. These on-going research 45 %
efforts for brackish water and seawater RO desa-
lination are important to increase potable water
source diversification and availability, as well as
potentially decrease water costs. * Membrane replacement,
chemicals, labor maintenance
Energy cost is the highest contributor to operating

cost and thus to the overall cost and this is valid Source: MEDRC training material
74
Table 14: Cost percentage in conventional RO and multi-stage flash distillation (MSF) of the same capacity in Libya
Desalination technology RO (membrane) MSF (thermal)
Investment cost 31 42
Energy cost 26 41
Maintenance and repair cost 14 8
Membrane replacement cost 13 0
Personnel cost 9 7
Chemicals cost 7 2
as local incentives or subsidies (Khan et al., 2017). for costing software, there is no transparency in the
Desalinated water costs per m3 can be substanti- methodologies used for cost estimations.
ally impacted by several factors like capacity and
type of desalination plant, feed water (seawater or For comparing the cost between the different
brackish water) and labour, location, and type of options, the reference value for the water produc-
energy used whether conventional or renewable tion cost in the case of conventional desalination
energy (Karagiannis et al., 2008 and Alkaisi et al., can be assumed equal to USD 1/m3 for medium to
2017). For example, phase change desalination small size desalination processes connected to the
processes that use traditional sources of fuel and grid. The desalination system typically used in a
energy generally have large production capacities stand-alone configuration is an RO process coupled
and are very expensive compared to membrane with a diesel-powered generator; due to the addi-
plants due to the requirement of large quantities tional charges for transporting and fuel storage, the
of fuel for vaporising saltwater. In the instance of water production cost can rise up to USD 1.5 /m3.
the Ashkelon SWRO plant, the overall fresh water While in the case of solar (PV) coupled with RO, the
cost was US USD 0.52/m3 (Water Technology Net. water production cost is USD 2/m3, and for MED/
2011). Similarly, membrane methods are more cost SGSP (solar-powered multi-effect evaporation/Ther-
effective for brackish water desalination (Ullah and mal desalination by salinity-gradient solar ponds),
Rasul, 2018). the water production cost is USD 1.5/m3.
There is no global standard for reporting desa- Continued innovations will reduce the cost of
linated water costs, and a direct comparison is MED and RO desalination. While desalination is a
often meaningless. The scope and all technical relatively small market for CSP, CSP can meet the
and commercial aspects of the projects must be large and growing energy demand. The cost of
considered. The Global Water Intelligence (GWI) did CSP desalination likely will decrease in response to
an effort through their portal desaldata.com where technical innovation, new materials, and efficiency
they have a tool called “cost estimator” which gives improvements, just as desalination did when RO
an estimation of the CAPEX, OPEX and the cost per was first introduced.
m3 once we introduce some inputs such as the type
of energy, capacity, location, etc. See an example For MSF (Multi-Stage Flash) desalination, CSP ener-
of the interface in Figures 26a, b, c: As it is the case gy source is not economically competitive due to
75
Figure 26a: Seawater desalination costing: CAPEX breakdown
Technology Basic Capex $120,790,579

SWRO Basic Capex / Capacity $1,208/m3
Capacity m /d3
1000000 Adjusted Capex $202,109,817

Seawater Adjusted Capex / Capacity $2,021/m3
40,000 mg/L
Seawater Min. Temp. Delivery Time Estimate 104 weeks
15ºC
Seawater Max. Temp. Factors Basic ($) Adjusted ($)
24ºC Pretreatment 10,267,199 32,855,038
Pretreatment Civil costs 21,440,328 21,440,328
Difficult Pumps 10,395,105 11,642,518
Second Pass Equipment and materials 26,875,904 32,519,844
50 % Design costs 6,945,458 34,727,292
Remineralisation Legal and professional 1,207,906 6,039,529
Yes Installation services 9,663,246 9,663,246
Intake / Outtake Membranes 6,341,505 7,102,485
Onerous Pressure vessels 1,811,859 2,029.282
Permitting Piping, High-grade alloy 15,702,775 15,702,775
Onerous Intake / Outtake 9,059,293 21,177,880
Country Energy Recovery Devices 1,080,000 1,209,600
Oman Total 120,790.579 202,109,817
Source: GWI 2018
Figure 26b: Seawater desalination costing: OPEX breakdown
Capacity (m3/d, set in Capex Factors Basic ($) Adjusted ($)

100000 Parts 1,040,250 1,040,250
Country (set in Capex) Chemicals 2,427,250 2,427,250
Oman Labour 3,011,459 2,710,313
Annual production (m3) Membranes 1,040,250 1,040,250
34,675,000 Electrical energy 9,709,000 3,034,063
Utilisation rate (%) Total 17,228,209 10,252,125
95
Energy consumption (kWh/m3)
3.5
Electricity price ($/kWh)
0.025
Labour factor
Determined by country Source: GWI 2018
76
Figure 26c: Seawater desalination costing: water cost per m3
Capacity (m3/d, set in Capex Factors Value($/m3)

100,000 Total capital cost and armotisation 0.58
Electricity price ($/kWh, set Total variable costs 0.022
in Opex) Energy costs 0.09
0.08 Labour 0.08
Utilisation rate (set in Opex) Overheads 0.05
95 Water Price 0.92
Interest rate (%)
6
Equity Yield (%)
12
Loan repayment (years)
20
Debt equity split (%)
75 Source: GWI 2018
high capital costs for both energy and desalination South Korea are the biggest builders of installed
technologies. It should be noted that CSP systems capacity.
costs incorporate the costs of thermal storage ca-
pacity for up to 6 hours. This leads to capital costs In Figure 27, we show comparisons of operational
of USD 6,300/kWe and USD 5,700/kWe for CSP cost distribution between Jordan and Kuwait from
parabolic trough and CSP tower, respectively (Bitar a simulation using DesalData Costing model. As
and Ahmad, 2017). expected, energy and labour is more expensive in
Jordan than in Kuwait. A similar comparison is car-
According to the International Desalination Asso- ried out between Oman and Algeria in Figure 28.
ciation (IDA), Suez and Veolia Group of France and Operational costs of energy are costing more in
Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. of Algeria than in Oman.
Figure 27: Detailed OPEX for Jordan and Kuwait respectively
Jordan Kuwait
6 10
15
30
38 24
34 10
7
26
Parts Chemicals Labor Membranes Electrical energy
77
Figure 28: Detailed OPEX for Algeria and Oman respectively
Algeria Oman
8 10
19 30
24
48
17 10
8 26
Parts Chemicals Labor Membranes Electrical energy
The above graph combines capital and operating countries. Our samples were taken from Jordan,
costs for a plant having a capacity of 100,000 m3/d Kuwait, Algeria and Oman in which the price varies
for different countries in the MENA region. The according to the different parameters mainly the
four diagrams give us an idea about the detailed electrical energy, the parts, the chemicals used, the
distribution of the average OPEX price in different labour needed as well as the membranes. These
Table 15: Cost percentage in conventional RO and multi-stage flash distillation (MSF) of the same capacity in Libya
MED RO
CSP › Continuous operation with › Continuous operation with

storage, power production electrical power production
not considered, the cost for and storage
heat are related to system
costs
› Continuous operation, heat
considered as free of charge
PV › 24h operation on grid

back up
› 24h operation off-grid
battery storage
› 7h operation off-grid
small battery
Wind › Off-grid discontinuous

operation
› 24h operation 12 to 24 %
coverage by wind 88 to 76 %
by grid
78
Figure 29: The future potential sources of decreasing desalination cost
New approach
Incremental
to desalination
improvements
in all areas
12.8
30.4
Better Membranes
23.5
16.9 5.4
Better energy 11.5
recovery Forward osmosis
Hybrid Process
Source: Pankratz 2015
diagrams confirm what we previously mentioned The reduction of desalination cost could take a
concerning the energy cost in oil-producing count- form of:
ries like Oman and Kuwait. The energy does not
exceed 30 % of the total OPEX in Oman and Kuwait › new desalination approaches (e. g. FO);
whereas it gradually increases in other countries to
reach 38 % in Jordan and 48 % in Algeria. › better membranes such as graphene membra-
nes (Abraham et al., 2017), carbon nanotubes,
Table 15 shows a comparison of 250 m3/d plants in nanomaterials;
the case of renewable desalination.
› Better energy recovery devices (e. g. Energy
To reduce the cost of sea water desalination, there Recovery Inc. “ERI” is already of great efficiency);
is still a margin of improvement (Figure 29).
› Incremental improvements in all areas.
79
Desalination impacts
I. Desalination
and water security
In the MENA region, the dominant public discourse Authority. This agreement was facilitated by the
on water politics holds that water scarcities are of World Bank, again highlighting the contribution
great, if often under-recognised, geopolitical im- that international organizations and donors can
portance. Pessimists and optimists alike tend to make in playing a constructive third party role and
assume that water has, or soon will have, profound promoting cooperative transboundary water ma-
geopolitical implications. However, some experts nagement as a tool for stability and prosperity.
such as Selby (2006) considers it a question of
political economy; that water is structurally insigni- Moreover, water security can both contribute to
ficant within the political economy of the modern fragility and to stability and should therefore be
MENA region; that in consequence water is gene- considered as an integral part of broader strate-
rally unimportant as a source of inter-state conflict gies for escaping fragility. Ensuring water security
and co-operation; and that, notwithstanding this, in this region will necessarily rely in part of it on
water supplies are a crucial site and cause of local desalination to produce enough quantity of water
conflicts in many parts of the region. Hence, given for the needs of the population and the economic
the worsening state of economic development activities.
within the region, these local conflict dynamics are
likely to further deteriorate. If we consider the case of Cape Town, which
suffered from a severe water shortage last years.
In the last decade, many voices raised to talk about In fact, over the past four years the Western Cape
future water wars or at least very severe conflicts Province was in the midst of the worst drought on
over water between states, mainly in the MENA record. One of the immediate measures taken by
region because of the shared water resources or the water authorities was investing in more small
what we call transboundary water resources. There- desalination plants. The recently-installed desali-
fore, cooperation or what we call water diplomacy nation plants installed at Strandfontein, Monwabisi
was promoted as concept to avoid such wars or and the V&A Waterfront are the latest investments
conflicts. But also we need to highlight that it is by the City of Cape Town to boost its potable water
much cheaper to invest in more efficient water use supply in the face of what’s now not only the City’s
systems, desalination technologies and the import worst drought on record, but a national disaster.
of virtual water than to fight over water. There’s widespread consensus amongst both water
technology specialists and municipal planners that
Transboundary water agreements and cooperation a desalination mega plant is among the most viable
can act as a catalyst for development and stability. long-term options for ensuring the City’s long-term
An example from the MENA region is the memo- water security.
randum of understanding outlining pilot regional
water-sharing initiatives signed between Israel, Other cities across the world – in Australia, Israel,
Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority. These include elsewhere in the Middle East and the GCC – that
a desalination plant in Aqaba, Jordan, where the have invested in desalination technologies to over-
water produced will be shared with Israel, increa- come similar supply challenges provide a model
sed releases to Jordan from Israel’s Sea of Galilee, of how it should best be implemented. These
and the sale of water from Israel to the Palestinian plants don’t get mothballed, even during periods
81
of abundant rainfall. Critics might question this

logic, citing the higher unit cost of desalinated
water versus conventional potable water treat-
ment should compel us to use desalinated water
only during periods where conventional treatment
cannot deliver the required volume of water. But
it’s precisely by keeping desalination plants run-
ning, constantly, that we can continually optimize
their efficiency and thus operating costs – across
energy; chemi-cals, equipment and other consu-
mables; and plant and equipment processes –
enabling a lower total cost of ownership and per
unit cost of water. That’s how today’s leading
large-scale desalination projects have been able to
drive down the costs of desalinated potable water
to even less than USD 1 per cubic metre – a price
that’s competitive with medium-term financial
forecasts for many municipalities.
82
II. Energy Requirements &

Carbon Footprint of Current Systems
In the climate change literature, mitigation refers to Electricity and heat generation accounts for about
efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while 25 percent of global emissions (IPCC 2014). Mitiga-
adaptation refers to strategies to deal with climate tion opportunities include replacing fossil-based
change impacts. Adaptation and mitigation initiati- electricity supplies with renewable sources and
ves push for sustainable desalination alternatives electrification, and reducing demand from end-
able to produce minimal or negligible quantities of consumers in the transport, industry, and building
CO2 to prevent climate change conditions. Howe- sectors, and from desalination plants.
ver, desalination is an example of conflict between
mitigation and adaptation measures, as it is still RO technologies Current state-of-the-art RO plants
the most energy intensive water treatment method for desalinating seawater may consume approxi-
and as most countries still power their desalination mately 3.5 kWh/m3 when all unit operations of
plants with fossil fuel. The energy required to desa- the overall system are considered, and they were
linate water varies depending upon the technology found to have lower CO2 emissions than thermal
used and system details, as well as the salinity of desalination technologies as the estimated carbon
the water, is desalinated. footprint of seawater RO desalination (0.4 – 6.7 kg
CO2 eq/m3) is generally larger than brackish water
Desalination is an alluring adaptation strategy as RO desalination (0.4 – 2.5 kg CO2 eq/m3) and water
it could provide a reliable, drought-resistant water reuse systems (0.1 – 2.4 kg CO2 eq/m3). The variation
supply to many coastal areas in the MENA region of such values is due to: location, technologies, life
and the GCC. Desalination also has the potential to cycle stages, parameters considered, and estima-
offer improved water quality compared to existing tion tools, which were identified as major chal-
sources. In some MENA countries such as Libya, lenges to making accurate comparisons. Carbon
desalination offer better supply option than water footprint estimation tools could be more precise if
transfer at least in terms of cost, because import- we separate emissions by unit process, direct and
ing water to the northern areas of Libya from the indirect emissions, and if we consider the offset
southern oasis requires a great amount of energy, potential of various resource recovery strategies
decreasing the total amount of water imported to (Cornejo et al. 2014).
the region could reduce the amount of energy used
for water supply, thereby reducing corresponding The direct carbon footprint of a desalination plant
GHG emissions. will depend upon the source of energy that drives
it, in addition to the efficiency of the plant. As in
That is said, replacing water transfers (mainly long most industries, desalination plants produce indi-
distance transfers) does not guarantee a reduction rect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well.
in GHG emissions because desalination plants are
also energy intensive. In addition, some desalination Fossil fuel-powered desalination plants have envi-
plants argue that they are not required to mitigate ronmental impacts related to the emission of GHG
emissions associated with their energy use because or other pollutants associated with power genera-
they are not directly emitting GHGs (Kelly, 2011). tion (Einav et al. 2002), contributing to temperature
increases due to the greenhouse phenomenon
(Malla 2009).
83
According to Voutchkov (2008), the desalination To reduce that negative impact associated with
unit carbon footprint is the quantity of CO2 that GHG, we need innovation breakthroughs. Some of
is emitted in the atmosphere by electricity gene- the possibilities are: to couple desalination plants
rating sources that provide the needed electricity with carbon-free or low-carbon power sources such
for plant operation. Carbon footprint is usually as solar, wind, or nuclear power plants, which could
calculated in tons of CO2 per year. The total carbon make it possible to gain the benefits of clean water
footprint of the desalination plants depends on two without the climate impact.
basic factors:
However, some of these renewable energies do
› quantity of electricity used up by the plants for not deliver power continuously, and some types
operation; and of desalination technology such as RO encounter
difficulties when their operation is not steady.
› the emission factor of the specific power plants
supplying desalination plants with electricity In terms of GHG impact versus Technology Readi-
(Laspidou et al., 2012). ness Level (TRL) for several low carbon desalination
systems, four areas were ranked high Technology
As a fraction of the world’s energy consumption and Readiness Level (TRL), high impact (Figure 30).
GHG emissions, desalination is relatively small and
estimated to be less than 0.2 % of global energy 1. PV-RO,
consumption in 2013. With RO, about 2.1 – 3.6 kg 2. Wind-RO,
CO2 are produced per m3 of freshwater, depending 3. CSP-thermal desalination hybrids, and
strongly on the fuel used to produce the electricity 4. Optimised power-water cogeneration.
(Lienhard et al., 2016).
Figure 30: GHG impact versus Technology Readiness Level (TRL) for several low carbon desalination systems
5
optimising intermittent PV-RO wind-RO
desalination system operatione
4 optimized
autonomous grids and power-watercogeneration
small-scale integration
CSP-thermal
desalination hybrids
salinity gradient power
2
Impact
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Technological readiness level
Source: Lienhard et al. 2016
84
Indirectly coupled arrangements or PV- and wind-

RO were viewed as higher TRL than directly coupled
arrangements (Lienhard et al., 2016).
It is obvious that when it comes to water supply

in such scarce water region, we need more than
any time to adapt our operations to prepare for a
changing climate, reduce our own impacts through
lowering our greenhouse emissions and generating
more renewable energy. In fact, we need to adapt
to less rainfall by harnessing alternative water
sources like desalination, storm water and recycled
water, and conducting controlled burns to protect
water supply catchments from bushfires.
On the other hand, brackish water has less salt than

seawater, so brackish water desalination most used
for agriculture in some MENA countries requires
less energy, and thus results in less GHG emissions
than seawater desalination. It can be used also with
recycled water recharge of underground aquifers.
In practice, the decision makers in the region

should make it obligatory to prepare a GHG in-
ventory for all aspects of the region’s existing and
planned water supply systems, including as much
detailed and quantitative data as is feasible given
time, expertise, and financial resources. Such an in-
ventory could lead to a sort of guidelines that state
which water supply technologies are lower-emission
alternatives and which ones should be given the
preference. This should lead to promoting further
renewable desalination.
In addition, an effective climate change adaptation

approach will require strategies to reduce GHG
emissions, and consequently encouraging more
renewable desalination.
85
III. Environmental impact
Desalination plants have been developed to deal super-heated effluent that many thermal plants
with water shortage problems in the world. There- discharged back into the sea and how it could kill
fore, desalination could hold the key for new fresh- corals and other marine life. Desalination indus-
water resources. However, some argue against try contests the saying that desalination facilities
building desalination plants on the grounds of nowadays cool this bilge so that it no longer poses
environmental impacts to the surrounding areas, such a threat.
especially to marine life due to the high concen-
trated brine discharge that diffuses back into the Another environmental concern centers on the
ocean. The impacts of the brine discharge are due use of fossil fuels to power desalination, especially
to the high level of salinity, chemicals and total in the MENA region. A study published in January
alkalinity and alteration to the temperature. 2019 (UNU-INWEH, 2019) ignited fresh controversy
about “toxic chemicals” in the brine that desalina-
These impacts could be considerable in terms of tion plants pour into oceans.
the influence on the marine organisms such as
the development of species, survival of larva and World’s 18,000 desalination plants discharge
breeding and reproductive traits. 142 Mm3/d of brine − 50 % more than previously
estimated; enough in a year to cover Florida under
In fact, the brine discharged by desalination plants a foot (30.5 cm) of brine (UNU-INWEH, 2019). The
contains twice the salt concentration of seawater scaling is due to the accumulation of salt particles
and does not contain oxygen, discharging it into the on the desalination plant components, and desali-
sea / ocean causes it to sink and spread along the nation plants try to get rid of it using chemicals,
sea/ocean floor, where it can have a devastating like Polyphosphate.
impact on benthic ecosystems, including the suf-
focation of fish eggs and other marine organisms This salty concentrate may contain harmful resi-
that inhabit this region (EFD group, 2017). The deli- dues from anti-scaling and anti-fouling chemicals
cate ecosystems on the ocean floor can be suffoca- used in the plants, according to the UNU-INWEH
ted by the negative environmental impact of brine, study.
resulting in a potentially disastrous environment
for marine life and what is known as “kill zones” or In addition, brine can also deplete oxygen in sur-
“dead zones.” rounding waters, suffocating marine organisms
and disrupting food chains. According to UNU-
Even if desalination production costs have decrea- INWEH (2019), 55 % of global brine is produced
sed in the last decade, those related to the disposal in just four countries: Saudi Arabia (22 %), UAE
of the brine have shown an only limited reduction (20.2 %), Kuwait (6.6 %) and Qatar (5.8 %). This is
of the relative costs. New production strategies due to the dominance of thermal desalination
benefit from modern and efficient freshwater- technologies in those countries (the trend is chan-
generation plants, but the management strategies ging currently), which typically produce four times
are based only on the few traditional options for as much brine per cubic meter of clean water as
the disposal of wastes. plants where RO dominates. However, the study
failed to differentiate between thermal and mem-
The criticism received since the proliferation of de- brane technologies. Some facilities try to dilute
salination plants in the last decade focused on the brine by dispersing it over larger areas of the sea
86
or processing it to extract valuable metals and concentrated solution of the salts and contami-
minerals. However, such methods are technically nants separated from the feed water with the
challenging and expensive according to the same RO membranes. The disposal of brine, which is
study. estimated to be twice as salty as seawater, causes
significant pressure to aquatic organisms. Hence,
The main impact could be resumed as follows: we need proper disposal for it, which many times
requires permits or other regulatory compliance
› raising the salinity of seawater: High salinity actions.
and reduced dissolved oxygen levels can have
profound impacts on benthic organisms, which In an era of inspired recycling and enviable reuse
can translate into ecological effects observable of industrial and manufacturing by-products, the
throughout the food chain; water treatment industry continues to search for
innovative disposal options or, better yet, viable
› polluting the oceans with toxic chemicals used secondary use options for high TDS (total dissolved
as anti-scalants and anti-foulants in the desa- solids) RO concentrate streams.
lination process (copper and chlorine are of
major concern); There are many brine disposal options available
today, all of which have a different environmental
› Brine management can represent up to 33 % and capital impact but no one satisfying the inte-
of a plant’s cost and ranks among the biggest rested parties fully.
constraints to more widespread development
(UNU-INWEH, 2019). Several factors are limiting the disposal options and
challenging the search for a technically, environ-
However, a recent study carried led by Southern mentally and financially feasible method. Among
Cross University in Australia, has found an unex- other factors: plant size, increasing regulations
pected benefit at the Sydney Desalination Plant: and public concerns. The discharge volumes are a
the excess salty water discharge attracts lots of particularly limiting factor for seawater desalination
fish. Lead researcher, Professor Brendan Kelaher plants (Bleninger & Jirka, 2010). The advantages
(Kelaher et al., 2019) from the University‘s National and disadvantages of typical brine management
Marine Science Centre, reported there was an options are summed up in Table 16.
almost three-fold increase in fish (pelagic and
demersal) numbers around the desalination dis Some plants are located in inland areas, away from
charge outlet. Following the cessation of discharge, the sea, and the brine they produce is put into
such an increase returned to levels such that there evaporation ponds, injected deep underground or
was no longer a significant effect compared to the converted into a slurry that is processed into a dry
period prior to the commencement of the desalina- salt for disposal.
tion plant’s operations. Kelaher et al (2019) explai-
ned that well-designed marine intake, outtake Evaporation ponds for disposal of concentrate
systems and processes used to support the increa- from desalination plants need to be constructed
sing demand for drinking water can also improve as per a specific design and maintained and ope-
local fish abundances and species richness. rated properly so as not to create any environmen-
tal problem, especially with regard to groundwater
RO desalination technology is used to treat water pollution. Liners are the most important feature of
in industrial and agricultural, among other ap- an evaporation pond and one of the major com-
plications. It effectively removes salts and conta- ponents in the construction cost. They should be
minants from brackish, seawater or wastewater. impermeable to avoid brine leakages and mecha-
RO produces a clean stream of high purity water nically strong to withstand stress during salt
and brine that requires disposal. Brine is a highly cleaning (Ahmed et al. 2000). The use of clay liners
87
Table 16: Comparison of brine disposal options for desalination plants
Disposal method Advantages Disadvantages
Surface water discharge › Can handle large volumes › Limited natural assimilation
› Natural processes promote capacities causing adverse
degradation impacts on marine environment
› Water body promotes dilution if exceeded
› Often least expensive option › Dilution depends on local
› Possible dilution and blending hydrodynamic conditions
with power plant discharge › Good knowledge and monitoring
of receiving waters required
Sewer disposal › Dilution through waste stream › Restricted capacity depending

› Uses existing infrastructure on sewage plant
› Possible beneficial treatment › Must meet sewer quality stan-
dards
› Final disposal generally still to
surface water
Deep well injection › No marine impacts › Only cost efficient for larger
› Good option for smaller inland volumes
plants › Maximum capacity hard to
assess
› Dependent on suitable, isolated
aquifer structure
› Danger of groundwater pollution
Evaporation ponds › No marine impacts › Strongly restricted capacity

› Possible commercial salt ex- › Large areas of land necessary
ploitation › Only in dry climate with high
› Low technological and mana- evaporation
ging efforts › Risk of soil and groundwater
pollution
› Disposal of unusable salts
needed
with low permeability will substantially reduce the Desalination plants near the ocean (almost 80 % of
cost of construction, although a small number of brine is produced within 10 km of coastline) most
leakages are to be expected. often discharge untreated waste brine directly back
into the marine environment.
Brine disposal methods are primarily dictated by
geography but traditionally include direct discharge Inland brine production is a particular issue in
into oceans, surface water or sewers, deep well China (3.82 Mm3/d), USA (2.42 Mm3/d) and Spain
injection and brine evaporation ponds. (1.01 Mm3/d).
88
Table 16 (continued): Comparison of brine disposal options for desalination plants
Disposal method Advantages Disadvantages
Land application › No marine impacts › Only for smaller discharge flows

› Alternative water source for › Possible adverse impact of che-
irrigation of tolerant species micals and pollutants on plants
› Risk of soil and groundwater
pollution
› Storage and distribution system
needed
Zero liquid discharge › No liquid waste disposal › Still not feasible on industrial
› Recovery of salt and minerals scale
› Solid residuals
› High energy need
› Expensive
In countries such as Oman, UAE and Saudi Arabia, Innovative and non-traditional use of the brine is
the most common disposal methods in inland its involvement in several industrial processes with
areas are evaporation ponds and land application. the dual beneficial objective to reduce its volume
It is well known that worldwide MENA is the largest significantly to be discharged and mitigate the ad-
producer of desalinated water, producing half of verse effects of some contaminants such as CO2.
the regions water capacity. Several new plants
are planned in the upcoming years to meet the That is said, there are economic opportunities to
increasing demand. use brine in aquaculture, to irrigate salt-tolerant
species, to generate electricity, and by recovering
Since the discharge, removal or treatment of the salt and metals contained in brine – including
brines from membrane-based seawater desa- magnesium, gypsum, sodium chloride, calcium,
lination plants are one of the most challenging potassium, bromine and lithium.
issues within the desalination business, MEDRC
is planning to run a brine discharge competition With better technology, a large number of metals
for researchers from different universities and and salts in desalination plant effluent could be
research institutes of the region. mined. These include sodium, magnesium, calcium,
potassium, bromine, boron, strontium, lithium,
Several factors intervene when it comes to de- rubidium and uranium, all used by industry, in pro-
ciding on the best option such as the volume or ducts, and agriculture. The needed technologies are
quantity of brine, quality of brine, location, and immature, however; recovery of these resources is
availability of the receiving site, regulations, costs, economically uncompetitive today.
and public acceptance. On the other hand, there is
another possibility which is reusing the brine: fish Using saline drainage water offers potential com-
culture (Barramundi, red snapper, black bream, mercial, social and environmental gains. Reject
Mullet, tilapia, and brine shrimp), algae produc- brine has been used for aquaculture, with increa-
tion, agriculture (salt tolerant crops) or biosaline ses in fish biomass of 300 % achieved. It has also
agriculture, solar ponds, and minerals recovery. been successfully used to cultivate the dietary
89
supplement Spirulina, and to irrigate forage

shrubs and crops (although this latter use can
cause progressive land salinisation.
Wider adoption of membrane technologies, par-

ticularly in the MENA region, looks like the best
way to reduce chemical-laden brine, because the
adopting membrane technologies for pretreat-
ment reduce the use of chemicals. Almost all new
facilities planned in the region will use RO, a trend
likely to continue as budget-minded Gulf govern-
ments cut subsidies on fossil fuels. These cuts, by
making thermal plants less competitive, are the
main reason membrane technologies are finally
taking off there.
The imperative to make seawater drinkable shows

no sign of easing. At current consumption rates,
the UAE’s largest emirate may run out of natural
groundwater supplies “within a few decades,” the
Abu Dhabi Environment Agency (EAD) said in a
2017 report. Rising demand for limited water re-
sources is spurring new ideas for food production
as much as for desalination. The International
Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) in Dubai re-
cycles brine to irrigate salt-tolerant plants such as
salicornia, which can be eaten or used for biofuel
(Dionyssia Aggeliki Lyra et al., 2016). The research
institute also breeds food crops like quinoa that
flourish in salty, desert soils.
90
IV. Legislation impact on

desalination industry and practices
Critics of desalination stress that the way desali- and cause less harm to the environment. Govern-
nation plants release the remaining salt brine into ments can favour these types of projects through
the ocean is harmful to the marine ecosystem. the permit process required to build and operate
Specifically, the concentrated salt brine can affect the plant. They can also support future operations
the salinity level of coastal ecosystems and, in by granting concessionary management contracts
turn, harm marine life. Therefore, it is important to supply residents with water.
not only simple to regulate how the plant disposes
of salt brine, but the authorities may also use the If a country chooses to support desalination, its
permit and concessionary process to support pro- agencies should analyse how the new desalination
posals that repurpose the brine. In other words, plants impact sustainability at each step of the
the authorities can allow innovation to inform water treatment process. This sustainability can
their definition of best practices. occur both at the economic (energy savings) and
environmental (marine life protection) level.
Desalination is an energy-intensive process. There-
fore, authorities may have concerns about the Installation and operation of a desalination facility
impact of desalination plants on greenhouse gas will have the potential for adverse impacts on air
emissions and their use of energy resources gene- quality, water/sea environment, and ground water
rally. As with the many examples worldwide, there and possibly other aspects. These must all be
are desalination projects that aim to offset energy considered and their acceptability and mitigation
consumption by implementing alternative energy requirements would usually be matters of national
sources. For instance, Saudi Arabia is investing in and local regulation and policies. Studies to exa-
an offshore facility that desalinates water using mine these effects would usually be conducted at
only renewable energy. each candidate site, and post-installation monito-
ring programs should be instituted (WHO, 2007).
An interesting and notable flip side of the water- A brief partial listing of issues follows:
energy nexus is that wastewater is becoming
recognised as a potential source of energy rather › Construction: Coastal zone and sea floor
than a mere waste stream. In several countries, ecology, birds and mammals habitat; erosion,
water supply companies are working towards non-point source pollution;
becoming energy neutral; they intend to generate
an amount of energy from wastewater that equals › Energy: Fuel source and fuel transportation,
the amount of energy consumed in their other cooling water discharges, air emissions from
operations. electrical power generation and fuel combus-
tion;
The current regulations in the MENA region show
two overall trends in regulating desalination plants. › Air Quality: Energy production related;
First, both sets of regulations promote significant
government intervention in the plant’s design and › Marine Environment: Constituents in waste
construction. Second, suggest supporting desa- discharges, thermal effects, feed water intake
lination projects that are less energy intensive process, effects of biocides in discharge water,
91
and toxic metals, oxygen levels, turbidity, sali-

nity, mixing zones, commercial fishing impacts,
recreation, and many others;
› Ground Water: Seepage from unlined drying

lagoons causing increased salinity and possibly
toxic metals deposition.
92
Capacity building
and technology
innovation
Capacity building and technology innovation
I. Capacity building efforts

in the MENA region
For over the last decade, the desalination commu- programs to achieve a better integration in water
nity including decision-makers, experts, industries resources management (Ghaffour, 2009).
and manufacturers have expressed in different
ways the need of stronger capacity building pro- The Middle East Desalination Research Center’s
grams in the region or at least at national levels (MEDRC) (Box 3) approach to enhance human
where there are massive campaigns mainly in the resources and expertise in the region via training,
GCC to localize the capacities and the technologies, academic education and research and develop-
and make the desalination industry run by locals. ment is contributing significantly to the national
In parallel, those expressed needs also correspond efforts in Oman and also in the region mainly in
to the increasing needs of the water market. One Palestine and Jordan.
major issue in the MENA region is the lack of quali-
fied manpower. MEDRC is following several schemes to assist the
region in this endeavor. These include offering
Most of these countries do not have training facil- short courses conducted in the region by interna-
ities or regimented programs for training the tionally recognised experts in the field, enhance-
needed staff. Plant suppliers are mainly doing the ment of research capabilities by including in the
training either on-site or for a short period abroad research team of each MEDRC-sponsored project
(home country of the supplier). a researcher from the region, and by sponsoring
students to undertake their postgraduate qualifi-
On the other hand, few institutions have imple- cations in desalination and its related fields in the
mented some academic programs and provided region or abroad.
short courses and workshops in desalination;
other institutions developed web-based training According to a study of Klaus Wangnick for GTZ
to the desalination community. However, these in Germany (Wangnick, 2005), conducted in the
actions cannot compensate for the need for real year 2000, the total training needs of desalination
institutional training and education as well as for personnel in the MENA region were estimated
research and development. to be about 36,500 people by the year 2010. In
2019 with the growth of desalination capacities by
Capacity-building is urgently needed at different almost four times comparing to 2010 and with the
levels: operators, educators, academics and strong campaign mainly in GCC towards localisa-
management. Achieving this target requires more tion of the human resources and the technology,
specific training efforts in desalination technolo- the number of people needing training on desali-
gies to encompass the principles, practice, opera- nation O&M would have increased almost by four
tion and maintenance, design, human resources times too in the MENA region. An essential prere-
management as well as research and development. quisite for a well-established desalination industry
Such a capacity-building program is necessary not is the presence of well qualified and experienced
only to operate and improve existing plants but personnel in the field. The most important recom-
also to develop new sustainable technologies. mendation in this respect is to establish training
Wastewater treatment and water reuse techno- and education centers or train the staff working in
logies should also be included in capacity-building the sector at academic institutions.
94
Box 3
MEDRC: The first and unique desalination center created in the MENA region
MEDRC is an International Organization mandated to find solutions to fresh water scarcity. Esta-
blished in 1996, it conducts research, training, development cooperation and transboundary water
projects. The MEDRC Headquarters is in Muscat in the Sultanate of Oman, where it operates a
state-of-the-art research facility including desalination plants, laboratories, lecture halls and ad-
ministrative offices. In delivering its mission, MEDRC aims to become a viable and transferable
mechanism for governments seeking to address significant regional or trans-boundary environ-
mental challenges.
MEDRC Headquarters in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
The MEDRC research program supports the scientific quest for solutions to fresh water scarcity
in the MENA region. A recognized regional center of excellence that boosts research on reverse
osmosis (RO) membrane technologies, renewable energies-based desalination and environmental
impacts of desalination. MEDRC aim specifically at conducting, facilitating, and promoting basic &
applied research in the water desalination field. MEDRC is a regional hub for exchanging and trans-
ferring knowledge on the most innovative and efficient technologies of desalination, between and
within the MENA countries.
MEDRC host a custom-built Water Training Centre at the organization’s headquarters in Muscat,
Oman. It is the only such facility in the region and includes training laboratories, seminar rooms, a
solar array and a reverse osmosis desalination plant built especially for training and research pur-
poses. To date more than 200 commercial training sessions covering all aspects of the water sector
including waste water, solar desalination, water laboratory testing, plant design and costing, have
been delivered to more than 700 students.
www.medrc.org
95
Desirable education programs should include all with a strong academic and practical education
desalination technologies and their related topics, and building a familiarity with real scale desalina-
with particular emphasis on some specific ones tion plants and procedures.
that vary with the local needs and characteristics
of a country. It should be flexible and dynamic, MEDRC is giving the program an ambitious ob-
allowing for changes and improvement in future jective of helping Oman to run all its desalination
technologies. The program should be taught in plants by Omani in three years from now. Hence,
an understandable language and meet the needs this program is contributing to finding jobs for
of a large population. Like all water issues and fresh graduates and unemployed engineers in
programs, awareness should start from primary Oman, and thanks to this program, the first Omani
and high school levels for better acceptability and and GCC national woman is working as a super-
effectiveness (Ghaffour, 2009). visor in desalination operations for Veolia in
Oman.
In MEDRC, the training program provides high-
quality specialized training for engineers and pro-
fessional technicians who are or will be operating
desalination plants or plants processing wastewa-
ter for reuse.
Technical competence is a necessity for efficient

operation of desalination plants. Plants with emp-
loyees who are well trained in the relevant techno-
logy and operations perform significantly better
than those with lower levels of training.
Training includes classroom instruction in the

theoretical aspects of the technologies and prac-
tical training in water processing. The program is
divided into various levels with each level tailored
to suit staff positions from entry level (newcomers
& students) through to level 3 (engineers & de-
signers). Training can be modified as necessary
to meet the needs of the operating companies of
desalination plants in Oman and elsewhere in the
MENA region.
Moreover, MEDRC launched in 2016 a successful

vocational desalination training program called
TAHLYA (desalination in Arabic), aiming at trai-
ning young Omani nationals in RO desalination.
The program is sponsored by BP Company with
training taking place at MEDRC facilities in Muscat
(Oman). TAHLYA aims to create a pool of skilled
employable labor to help meet the manpower re-
quirements of the countries expanding desalina-
tion sector. Training is delivered using a three-tie-
red developmental approach providing students
96
II. Technology
innovation perspectives
Advances in technology and desalination systems That is said, no major technology breakthroughs
components have resulted in a reduction of almost are expected to dramatically lower cost of sea-
80 % of the energy used to produce freshwater water desalination in the upcoming few years.
over the last 20 years. Nowadays, the energy nee- However, the steady reduction of production costs,
ded to produce fresh water from seawater is less coupled with increasing costs of water treatment
than the quarter of what has been used for the driven by more stringent regulatory requirements,
same purpose in the 80s. are expected to accelerate the current trend of
increased reliance on the ocean as a water source.
In terms of advance in desalination technology, This will further establish ocean water desalination
we are closer to the thermodynamics limits, and as a reliable, drought-proof alternative for many
like in computer technology and computers, coastal communities worldwide (Voutchkov, 2017).
SWRO membranes are now much smaller, more
productive, more selective and cheaper than the Technology advances are expected to reduce
first working prototypes. the cost of desalinated water by 20 % in the next
few years, and by up to 60 % in the next 20 years
Conventional treatment technologies, such as (Table 17), making it a viable and cost-effective
sedimentation and filtration pretreatment), have competitor for potable water production.
seen modest advances since their initial use for
water treatment several centuries ago; but new, On the other hand, improvements in membranes
more efficient desalination membranes, innova- such as graphene membranes and other nanoma-
tive thermal membranes or hybrid desalination terials are likely to impact the desalination indus-
technologies, and equipment improvements are try. However, current processes are not optimised
released every few years. yet to take full advantage of the higher selectivity
Table 17: Forecast of desalination costs for medium & large size projects
Parameter for Best-in-Class Year 2016 Within 5 Years Within 20 Years

Desalination Plants
Cost of Water (USD/m3) 0.8 – 1.2 0.8 – 1.2 0.3 – 0.5.
Construction Cost (USD/1000 m3/d) 1.2 – 2.2 1.0 – 1.8 0.5 – 0.9
Electrical Energy Use (kWh/m3) 3.5 – 4.0 2.8 – 3.2 2.1 – 2.4
Membrane Productivity (m3/membrane) 28 – 47 35 – 55 95 – 120
Source: IWA 2016
97
and permeability of graphene. New desalination We see clearly how membrane technologies took
processes are, therefore, needed to unlock the full the edge on thermal ones and the trend won’t
benefits of graphene for instance. This process change in the few upcoming years.
may take more than a couple of years.
That is said, membrane technologies will be de-

finitely dominating the market even more in the
upcoming years (Figure 31).
Figure 31: Capex by desalination type from 2006 to 2023
4
Spend ($ bn)
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Membrane Thermal Other
Source: GWI 2018
98
III. Recommendations to policy-makers

and investors of this sector
The global capacity of desalination plants, in- Integrated molten salt energy storage technology
cluding renewable desalination, is expected to provides twice the generation compared to the
continue growing at an annual rate of more than same size PV project. It allows solar to operate as
9 % (Voutchkov, 2016). The market is set to grow baseload generation and dispatch when energy
in both developed and emerging countries such is needed most at a fraction of the cost of battery
as the United States, China, Saudi Arabia and the and other storage technologies. It enables CSP
UAE, and even in MENA countries traditionally plants to operate like a conventional fossil fuel or
poor in fossil fuels such as Morocco, Tunisia and nuclear power plant, reliably generating electricity
Egypt. when it’s needed most - but without the harmful
emissions and any fuel cost.
A transition to solar energy offers the prospect
of increasing supplies of desalinated water while Less than 1 % of MENA’s land mass would be
significantly reducing CO2 emissions (El Kharraz, J., required to provide solar power for the needs
2017). Deploying CSP for seawater desalination of the entire region. To achieve this, the political
is one modern approach. PV can also be used for framework must adapt: dismantle subsidies for
BW treatment and for powering water pumping fossil fuels, encourage joint investments and cross
stations. However, the success of solar desalina- border grid expansion with MENA countries.
tion technologies at large scale commercially de-
pends on the economic cost of converting SE into There is an essential gap between the amount of
electricity. Current solar technology does not lend R&D focusing on the technological dimension of
itself to large-scale desalination projects, but is desalination and the research on other dimen-
useful at smaller scales, especially in remote areas sions, mainly in what concerns financing; health
with no grid electricity. In such areas, decentrali- impacts; social issues (and among this afford
sed solar desalination plants offer independence ability by different kind of users), and (geo)poli-
and protection from price rises from utility or tical concerns. These questions revolve around a
water companies, but the benefits of solar go far large number of unsustainable factors associated
beyond desalination. Once installed, clean energy with desalination, which is even considered as a
can also be used for soil fumigation and for drying form of “maladaptation” to climate change. Some
animal feed for winter use. Thus deploying rene- of the issues (energy costs, emissions, marine pol-
wable solutions for increasing water supply also lution) have received considerable attention, but
creates opportunities in intersecting areas. others (differences in social and sectoral access,
obstacles to effective water conservation policies,
To fight global climate change, the MENA region the potential for improving certain geopolitical
should reduce energy use in current water supply and environmental situations; health effects,
systems, and prohibit building new energy-inten- and others) remain more elusive and constitute
sive water projects, and if we are to keep building fertile grounds for future investigations. More
new desalination plants, we will need necessarily over, a great deal of these investigations would
to build more solar and wind farms to generate fall broadly within the field of socioenvironmental
electricity needed to operate the plants. studies. In this sense, advancing social science
99
research can help in bridging the gap between › The potential of desalination to address climate
the technology/engineering literature and socio- variability (i. e. desalination as a supplementary
environmental scholarship and thereby enhance source to be activated during dry periods) and
opportunities for widening and enriching policy the financial and distributive costs of on and
discourses. off production of desalinated water;
Advancing our knowledge of the socioenviron- › Potentialities and problems of small-scale

mental processes associated with desalination desalination.
needs research efforts in several fronts which
could be framed along with the following points:
› Comprehensive data base / atlas on desalina-

tion plants and of their characteristics at MENA
scale;
› Perception of desalted water for drinking by

users: health hazard concerns;
› Desalination in areas of water-related geopoli-

tical conflicts;
› Affordability of desalted water for small far-

mers and low-income urban dwellers;
› Desalination and the conflicts between agricul-

ture, mining and urban uses;
› The contribution of desalination for easing

the pressures on freshwater ecosystems and
hence help to fulfill the national and regional
strategies / policies;
› Desalination and water reuse: competing or

complementing?
› Desalination as a strategy to recover polluted

surface and groundwater resources;
› The financing of desalination plants and cost-

sharing mechanisms among communities of
users;
› The ownership of desalinated seawater;
100
Summary
Summary
Desalination has become the most appropriate procedure would possibly emerge that would be
solution to produce fresh water to serve the con- globally approved. However, due to the vastness
tinuously growing population in the world and to of the endeavor those workshops only allowed the
contribute to ensuring water security. In count- limited review of desalination technologies, exis-
ries such as GCC, desalination has given then ting cost models, desalination project boundary
security of supply. In fact, several GCC cities are conditions, planning issues and case studies.
relying almost 100 % on desalinated water. That’s MEDRC has further plans for standardising pro-
said, desalination is not enough to secure water cedures for desalinated water costing and for pro-
supply in cases of risks such as acute harmful algal ducing a costing software package that could be
blooms, or terrorist attacks that may stop the pro- made available to the desalination community.
duction of desalination plants. Doha, for example,
is estimated to have just three days‘ water supply; There is an urgent need to make desalination
it’s currently building a strategic reservoir that will technologies more affordable and extend them to
raise this to a week (Elgendy 2015). low-income and lower-middle income countries.
At the same time, though, we have to address
The most used desalination technology is Reverse potentially severe downsides of desalination −
Osmosis, which have reached more than 90 % the harm of brine and chemical pollution to the
in some of the MENA countries, according to the marine environment and human health. The good
latest information given in Desal Data. news is that efforts have been made in recent
years and, and we see a positive and promising
For desalination to become an alternative to outlook, with continuing technology refinement
alleviate water scarcity and a climate change to decrease costs and increase the sustainability,
adaptation option in the MENA region, all water using advanced pretreatments that minimize the
stakeholders need to be consulted extensively. use of chemicals, and brine discharge methods
This must be carried out through a participatory that help dilution and improving economic affor-
approach and engagement process that could be dability, we see a positive and promising outlook.
mandated by the national water strategy or equi- Especially important is to decrease energy con-
valent (master plan). Operators, fishermen asso- sumption, which has an impact on the operation
ciations, farmers, municipalities, and consumers; costs and also the environmental impact through
all need to be consulted. This happened in some carbon dioxide emissions.
countries in the form of a national debate but
needs further enforcement and concretisation. However, another severe downside is the carbon
emission associated with the high energy con-
Innovation in the coming years will have a signifi- sumption of desalination, and how this must
cant impact on whether large-scale solar desalina- decrease.
tion projects are feasible. Governments can tackle
water shortages and adapt to climate change Even the largest oil producing countries in the
around the globe with various strategies. Howe- Gulf are aware of the importance of having sus-
ver, encouraging water treatment methods with tainable desalination plants that will operate for
potential for innovation, like desalination, is a way the upcoming years regardless of the oil price
of increasing governments’ options when faced fluctuations. Desalination consists of energy-
with droughts. intensive processes which explain the urgent
need to reduce energy consumption (Srinivas,
Realising the importance of desalination costing, 2007). The RO technique is the first step towards
MEDRC organised several international workshops that principle. However, more innovative tech-
on desalination costing in 2004, 2017 and 2018 niques and processes using renewable energy
to formulate generally accepted procedures for should emerge as soon as possible to reduce
costing with the hope that, in the end, a standard the impact of the desalination plants, avoid huge
102
Summary
operation costs shortly and finally meet the grow- Therefore, investing in renewable energies makes
ing demand for fresh water in the region (Thafer, sense from a water perspective. If Arab countries
2015). Examples of the emerging technologies meet their set target shares of renewable energies
would be MD, the carbon nanotube membranes, in the overall energy mix, significant savings would
aquaporin membranes and FO processes. How be made in water withdrawals, consumption and
ever, scaling up these technologies remain a big their associated energy spending. The renewable
issue. energies-based freshwater generation should
be seen as a valuable economic investment that
GCC countries should work on the water sector reduces external, social, and environmental costs.
governance through applied research, informa- In addition, if we use simple solar-driven small
tion systems, better data sharing and technologi- systems, it is simpler and less costly than conven-
cal innovation to find effective ways to reduce the tional ones.
costs as well as protecting the environment and
the scarce water resources.
Policy makers need to consider the different

choices for desalination based on locally available
renewable energy resources. For instance, solar
energy, in particular, heat from CSP for thermal
desalination and electricity from solar PV and CSP
for RO, is a key solution in the MENA region.
Solar desalination is a good example of the wa-

ter-energy-food nexus implementation if combi-
ned with food production through greenhouses
practices and other similar projects. As the de-
mand for food, water and energy are expected
to rise by 30 – 40 % by 2030, solar desalination is
called to contribute significantly to SDGs 2 (food
security), 6 (water) and 7 (energy). For instance,
energy generation contribution in Saudi Arabia
will increase 4.4 – 5.5 % by 2032 in terms of Solar
PV and by 11.7 – 17.2 in terms of Solar CSP.
Furthermore, most energy strategies within the

Arab world have set goals of increasing the share
of RE in the energy make-up; for example, Tunisia,
is aiming for 30 % share of renewable energies
in the electricity mix by 2030 whereas Morocco
hopes to reach 12 % by 2020, Egypt an ambitious
20 % by 2020. It is worth to mention also that one
of the targets in the Arab Region is: “By 2020, de-
velop alternative and practical solutions for using
non-conventional water resources with a focus on
the use of renewable energy in water desalination
and water treatment for meeting the increasing
water demand in the Arab Region”.
103
Conclusions &
recommendations
Conclusion & recommendations
Seawater desalination is vital for MENA countries › Organise an annual stakeholder’s forum that
and their reliance on this source is expected to can prioritize and facilitate the exchange of
grow fast. This growth will only be possible by knowledge and capacity building activities;
continuing to improve the sustainability of related
technologies. › Provide independent science advice to gov
ernments of the MENA on the best choices
Desalination can reasonably be considered a of technologies and financial set-up of their
worthwhile adaptation strategy only if we ensure desalination projects;
proper construction, minimize environmental
impacts and generate electricity from non-fossil › Assist key decision makers in planning desali-
fuel sources. nation projects;
The MENA region needs to localise knowledge. › Assess desalination potential including the eco-
Currently, there are not enough qualified staff nomic, environmental and social cost;
to operate modern desalination technologies,
including solar desalination plants. This is why it is › Provide expertise and assistance when needed
important to invest in training, knowledge trans- and promote best practices;
fer and capacity building.
› Boost innovation and knowledge transfer bet-
By designing incentives for local businesses, gov- ween MENA countries;
ernments can attract domestic investments in
manufacturing critical components and cultivating › Provide advisory support and contribute to
local innovations to attain economic sustainability. national & regional desalination policies;
However, government enterprises should not
continue to build and operate desalination plants › Help the countries of the region to secure
as before; steps should be taken to attract local water supply.
investors using set targets for locally produced
products and labor force and to manage these It will play a proactive role in helping MENA desali-
assets minimising the life-cycle cost of water and nation decision makers, governments and experts
environmental impact. Like private enterprises, stay at the forefront, build expertise and show
government enterprises should value energy at leadership in Desalination field. We also recom-
world market prices and provide incentives for mend to:
in-house R&D departments to promote innovati-
ons in technology and operation. › Develop a comprehensive regulatory frame-
work related to desalination and provide in-
Therefore it is recommended to create a regio- centives to reduce the carbon footprint as well
nal observatory with the aim is to increase the as the environmental impact;
cooperation and knowledge exchange between
MENA countries in desalination technologies to › Support the existing technology centres and
adopt the best and most sustainable desalination science parks in the MENA region;
technologies towards meeting their increasing
water demand. › Expand and support technical and vocational
training programs in desalination (Inc. e-learning);
The specific objectives could be to:
› Set up extensive educational specialisations
› Promote localization of desalination, mainly & social partnerships in desalination & water
renewable & sustainable desalination; treatment;
105
› Increase regional R&D cooperation to ensure

that the MENA region becomes an innovation
hub in desalination technology.
Despite being energy intensive technology, the

IPCC lists desalination as an “adaptation option”
which is particularly important the MENA region
and mainly in countries with high GDP and where
water security can justify investments in desali-
nation technologies. In fact, GCC countries for in-
stance may have the financial capabilities needed
for adaptation measures, the rest of the region is
more vulnerable to risks.
The innovation of desalination lies not only in the

technology component but in its potential use as
a bridge between nations. As climate change and
population growth continue to place stress on
Earth’s finite water resources, we hope to make
great strides in desalination and other water
technologies to meet the world’s and particularly
MENA’s growing demand for water.
106
Regional Program Energy Security and Climate Change in the Middle East and North Africa
(KAS - REMENA) of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS)
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) is a political foundation, closely associated with the Christian
Democratic Union of Germany (CDU).
Besides the eight country-based programs which the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung runs in the M iddle
East and North Africa, the Foundation’s Regional Program Energy Security and Climate Change
Middle East and North Africa (KAS - REMENA), based in Rabat since 2017, implements cross-national
projects with reference to the MENA region. Its objective is to strengthen sustainable development
and to support the stability of the region in terms of climate change and its consequences. This
implies as well the promotion of cooperation and partnership with the European Union.
The following core areas fall within the program’s scope:
› Facilitating dialogue and cross-national exchange particularly with regards to concepts

and measures concerning resource security, especially energy;
› Promoting political framework conditions for a reliable and sustainable water supply
with a special focus on the “Water-Energy-Food” Nexus;
› Supporting development and implementation of strategies to prevent and to adapt to

the political, economic, social and ecological consequences of climate change, including
the linkage of climate change, security and migration;
› Promoting development of a sustainable economy with focus areas on circular economy

and sustainable finance.
Our instruments for implementing our goals are cross-country and cross-regional dialogue pro-
grams such as workshops, conferences, academies or information and study visits together with
international, European and local experts. The activities are designed to enhance the exchange
of information and experiences. Furthermore, policy papers and research illustrate concepts for
partnership-based cooperation and raise awareness among decision-makers for integrated, cross-
regional solutions concerning sustainable resource availability as well as climate change effects on
society, economy and security.
KAS - REMENA: https://www.kas.de/en/web/remena/home
107
Registratur
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MEDRC Water Research

Foreword4 Capacity building and technology innovation 93

Acknowledgements5 I. Capacity building efforts in the

State of the art of desalination References108

I. Desalination capacity in MENA 23

Desalination as a climate change

I. Desalination as adaptation option 62

I. Desalination and water security 81

5+5 Western Mediterranean Countries

MDC Microbial Desalination Cells

SGSP Salinity-gradient solar ponds

Desalination is becoming increasingly important

› Provide recommendations to policy makers

II. Water scarcity

Figure 1: Reverse Osmosis (RO) process

Source: MEDRC training material

Table 1: Commercially available desalination processes

Major processes Minor processes

* FO needs another step for DS (distant selection) regeneration, e. g. heat.

Figure 2: Reverse Osmosis (RO) system

Pre-treated High pressure Reverse osmosis

Source: MEDRC training material

Table 2: RO advantages and practical limitations

Advantages Practical limitations

Figure 3: MEDRC RO pilot plant (RO System – 2 stages)

1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020

World MENA Gulf

Source: Desal Data/GWI

Indicators (in per cent)

RO MSF MED Electrodialysis Other 1,000,000 m³/day

Source: Desal Data/GWI

Location Capacity (m3/d) Process Feedwater Operation year Cost (USD)

Al Shuaiba 3, KSA 880,000 Thermal (MSF) Seawater 2009 0.57/m³

Location Capacity (m3/d) Process Feedwater Operation year Cost (USD)

Ras Al-Khair, 1,025,000 RO N/A 2016 -

Source: Desal Data/GWI

Location Capacity (m3/d) Process Feedwater Operation year Cost (USD)

Jubail 3b IWP, 600,000 RO Seawater 2022 EPC cost: USD:

Source: Desal Data/GWI

Source: Google Earth

A Gulf region (GCC) C The use of desalinated water

Figure 7: Desalination technologies distribution (Capacities in Mm3/d) in GCC

Bahrain Kuwait Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia UEA

MSF RO NF MED Other / Unknown

Source: Desal Data/GWI

Figure 8: Desalination technologies distribution (Capacities in Mm3/d) in North African countries

Algeria Egypt Jordan Libya Tunisia

MSF RO NF MED Other / Unknown

Source: Desal Data/GWI

Figure 9: Total capacity by customer type in the MENA region

Water injection Demonstration

Source: Desal Data/GWI

II. Zoom on some

A Desalination in Tunisia › Increase the rate of waste water reuse;

1 Desalination plants in Tunisia

To be noted that Bengardene desalination plant

Foreword4 Capacity building and technology innovation 93

Acknowledgements5 I. Capacity building efforts in the

State of the art of desalination References108

I. Desalination capacity in MENA 23

I. Desalination as adaptation option 62

I. Desalination and water security 81