At first glance, Saudi Arabia may seem an unlikely supporter of renewable energy, considering the vast oil resources under its control.  On the contrary, Saudi Arabia is looking to take advantage of its other prolific resource – sunlight – with new solar power projects designed to keep the country competitive as renewables increasingly play a role in the overall energy mix.

Mohammed Y. Al-Qahtani, executive director of petroleum engineering and development at Aramco believes “renewables will have an important place in the total energy equation.”   Saudi Arabia is looking to use its substantial solar resources as a substitute for oil to generate power domestically as well as to power desalination plants.  Although solar is currently more a more expensive means of power generation than oil or gas, Al-Qahtani expects this will shift over time.

The Kingdom recently invested in one of the world’s largest solar-heated complexes at a school in the northwestern part of the country, and is considering participating in the Desertec Initiative which would transmit electricity from North Africa and Middle Eastern solar power plants to Europe.

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Michael Kanellos of Greentech Media reports Saudi Arabia’s King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology has begun work on a solar-powered desalination plant.

Population and industry demands combined with Saudi Arabia’s arid climate have placed great strain on local water resources.  As a result, Saudi Arabia has grown into the world’s largest producer and consumer of desalinated water.  Currently, the Kingdom accounts for 18% of desalinated water worldwide.

Because desalination plants are high energy consumers, it could turn out to be quite expensive to power such a plant via solar panels.  However, the oil-rich nation has been taking active steps towards alternative energy technologies, and it will be interesting to see how this project develops, says Kanellos.

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Both India and South Africa are establishing massive seawater desalination plants in order to address the supply and treatment of domestic water resources.

India will begin construction on the nation’s largest desalination plant in the city in Nemmili next month.  The project is slated for completion in two years, at which point it will be capable of producing 100 million liters per day (MLD) of fresh water from sea water via reverse osmosis.  The desalination plant will help meet municipal water needs, which have previously been met via monsoon rains.  Changing climate and weather patterns, however, are making India’s monsoon season more unpredictable.  Read more here…

In South Africa, upgrades are being made to an existing desalination plant on the Eastern Cape.  Upon completion, the new plant will have a ready to serve a municipal population of nearly 50,000 people in the Ndjambe Municipality.   Read more here…

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Water and Electricity Abdullah Al Hussayen announced plans to build a large-scale desalination and power generation plant to provide more resources for the desert kingdom.

The plant will be capable of desalinating 1 million cubic meters of water annually, and will generate 1000MW of power each year.  It is estimated that 14,000 large-scale desalination plants of this type are in operation worldwide, with a total installed capacity of 10.5 billion gallons of water per day.

“There has been no breakthrough in the cost of desalination,” said Al Hussayen.  Desalination costs have risen 33% recently, and the technology is “beyond the affordability” of most of the world’s water-strapped population.  ”The solution,” he said, “is reducing per capita consumption in municipal use.”

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Morocco has enlisted Germany as an ally as it works to develop its domestic renewable energy resources. The nation currently imports 97% of its energy, but has announced plans to develop a solar-powered desalination plant and install 2,000MW of solar by 2020.

The DESERTEC Initiative plans to invest €400 billion over the coming years to harness the North African sunlight with massive solar thermal installations.  The energy generated from the sun will then be transported to Europe via underwater cables.  By 2050, the Initiative could provide up to 15% of Europe’s electricity needs.  Morocco is competing with nations like Algeria, Tunisia and Libya for some of these investment dollars.

Because Morocco already has a power cable link to Europe, DESERTEC member companies such as Munich Re, Siemens AG and RWE AG have shown great interest in the project.  Further details will be fleshed out during a round of talks between the governments next week.

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