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Officials say the Kingdom also has the world’s largest single production site, with a total daily output of 2.99 million cubic meters, and the biggest water storage tank in Riyadh, holding 3 million cubic meters. Illustrative image.
Dubai: Saudi Arabia has maintained its position as the world’s leading producer of desalinated water, boasting the world’s largest pipeline network, which carries desalinated water daily with a capacity of 19.42 million cubic meters, according to the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture.
Saudi Arabia’s extensive pipeline network, extending 14,210 kilometers, plays a key role in meeting the Kingdom's water needs by efficiently distributing desalinated water to cities and remote areas.
Saudi authorities attribute these achievements to the government’s “Water Strategy.”
The country holds several Guinness World Records, including the largest potable water storage network at 8.9 million cubic meters per day and the biggest drinking water storage facility in Riyadh, with a daily capacity of 4.79 million cubic meters.
Officials say the Kingdom also has the world’s largest single production site, with a total daily output of 2.99 million cubic meters, and the biggest water storage tank in Riyadh, holding 3 million cubic meters.
In desalination, the Kingdom maintains what officials call the world’s largest thermal evaporation unit in Shuaiba, with a daily capacity of 92,000 cubic meters, and the world’s biggest mobile desalination plant, with a capacity of 50,000 cubic meters per day.
Saudi Arabia also has the lowest energy consumption rate in desalination plants, at 2.271 kWh per cubic meter.
Wastewater projects
The National Water Company (NWC) completed 36 water service projects valued at 992 million riyals last year. These include laying 894 kilometers of pipelines, building 29 reservoirs with a total storage capacity of 109,500 cubic meters, and establishing a purification facility capable of treating 5,000 cubic meters of water per day.
Pumping stations with a combined capacity of 546,080 cubic meters per day were also constructed. NWC expects to finish another 31 projects worth 2.14 billion riyals before the end of 2024.
Twelve wastewater projects, totaling 1.2 billion riyals, have been completed, with officials noting 93 kilometers of pipelines, treatment plants handling up to 52,000 cubic meters daily, and pumping stations with a collective capacity of 277,700 cubic meters per day.
Another 26 wastewater projects, valued at 1.83 billion riyals, are slated for completion by year’s end.
In parallel, authorities connected 17,300 additional homes to the sewage network and built 15 desalination reduction stations in the eastern region, 12 of which are now operational.
During the 2024 Hajj season, more than 45 million cubic meters of water were pumped through 5,000 kilometers of networks to serve pilgrims, and over 75,000 lab tests ensured water quality. Complaints were managed via the “Tarwiah” app and a unified control center.
The Saudi Water Partnerships Company said its projects have achieved over 60 per cent local-content contribution throughout their contractual duration.
Meanwhile, the Saudi General Authority for Irrigation announced it surpassed its Q3 reuse target for treated wastewater by 115 per cent, reaching 390 million cubic meters annually compared to a goal of 181.19 million cubic meters.
Additionally, the Saline Water Conversion Corporation, operating under the Saudi Water sector, secured patents for new technologies in salt extraction, water intake protection, and chemical-washing systems in desalination processes—developments hailed by officials as a milestone in innovation and sustainability within the Kingdom’s water industry.
Source: Gulf News
