RIYADH — Saudi Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Abdulrahman Al Fadhley, who is also the chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saline Water Conversion Corporation, signed on Thursday contracts to implement new projects for the Al Shuaiba and Al Shuqaiq desalination plants. The combined capacity of the plants — Al Shuaiba (600,000 cm/d) and Al Shuqaiq (400,000 cm/d) — will be one million cubic meters of desalinated water. The new project aims to reduce the cost of producing a cubic meter of desalinated water to SR1.2 or less and to reduce the electricity consumption to less than 2.75 kilowatts/hr per cubic meter. The signing ceremony was attended by the Governor of Saline Water Conversion Corporation, Abdullah Al-Abdul Kareem. These projects come in the implementation of the directives of the government and an affirmation of its constant keenness to provide all necessary services to citizens and residents in all parts of the Kingdom. The projects are also part of the initiative to maximize the utilization of assets by replacing thermal technologies for plants with the economical and more qualitative reverse osmosis technology, with aim to double the production and supply of desalinated water in order to cut the cost by SR8.8 billion annually. The initiative, which is the result of joint cooperation between the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Energy, aims to achieve a higher localization rate with new technologies and to enhance competitiveness. The new projects meet the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 in the areas of reducing energy consumption and preserving the environment.
