The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which is already the world’s largest producer of desalinated water, yesterday announced that it is to construct six more desalination plants imminently, bringing the total number of desalination plants in the Kingdom to 36.
Four of the planned plants, to be used for the production of both drinking water and electricity, will cost SR20 billion, the Deputy Minister of Water and Electricity, Abdullah A. Al-Hussain, announced yesterday when he inaugurated the two-day forum on desalination and water treatment technology held in Riyadh under the auspices of the Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC).
A large number of Saudi and joint-venture companies are participating in the forum, which features locally manufactured spare parts required by desalination and water treatment industries.
Arab News today quoted Al-Hussain, who is also Governor of SWCC, as saying that the six new desalination plants would be established in Farsan, Qunfudha, Al-Laith, Rabiq, Al-Wajea and Al-Umlaj. The biggest desalination plant in the Kingdom is the SR3.71 billion Al-Shuaiba plant, whose production capacity in the second phase will rise to 150 million cubic-metres from the current level of 24.6 million cubic-metres in the first phase.
Source: SPA
