SWA President: Desalinating one cubic meter costs SAR 1.7

SWA President Abdullah Alabdulkareim said Saudi Arabia is achieving high levels of energy efficiency

The cost of producing one cubic meter of seawater with private-sector participation has fallen to about SAR 1.7, thanks to advances in the Kingdom’s innovation ecosystem and investments in water technologies, Saudi Water Authority (SWA) President Abdullah Al-Abdulkarim said.

Speaking to Al Eqtisadiah newspaper on the sidelines of the Innovation Driven Water Sustainability Conference (IDWS) in Jeddah, Al-Abdulkarim said Saudi Arabia is achieving high levels of energy efficiency despite being located between two of the saltiest seas in the world. He added that transporting water to cities and high-altitude regions requires innovative solutions to reduce costs and enhance sustainability.

He emphasized the private sector’s role in implementing water projects through a model that allows full cost recovery, noting that Saudi Arabia provides an integrated system covering production, transmission, distribution, treatment, and reuse.

The official said the country’s wastewater reuse rate has reached 33%, supporting growth in several economic sectors.

Al-Abdulkarim highlighted major improvements in desalination energy efficiency, with consumption falling from 15 kilowatts to 2.3 kilowatts per cubic meter in less than 10 years through national engineering initiatives. He also pointed to ongoing opportunities to further improve supply and distribution efficiency and increase reuse to support water-intensive industries such as mining.