The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has selected Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power as its preferred bidder for the construction and operation of Phase I of the Hassyan Sea Water Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) project.
Estimated to cost Dh3.357bn, Phase I of the independent water produce project is expected to have a water desalination capacity of 180 million imperial gallons per day.
The project is planned to be commissioned in a phased manner across 2025 and 2026. It marks the world’s largest development of its kind for water production, based on SWRO technology using solar power.
Following a tender launch for the proposed project, DEWA received the lowest bid from ACWA Power.
DEWA managing director and CEO Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer said: "We have a clear direction for the energy sector in Dubai with a priority to use clean energy in line with the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050 to provide 100% of Dubai’s total power capacity from clean energy sources by 2050.
“We are building water production plants based on seawater reverse osmosis technology which require less energy than multistage flash distillation plants, making it a more sustainable choice for water desalination.”
The latest project is expected to increase the DEWA’s water desalination capacity in Dubai from 490 million imperial gallons per day to 670 million imperial gallons per day in 2026.
The DEWA has set a target to produce 100% of desalinated water via a mix of waste heat and clean energy by 2030.
