Water Scarcity Context
The UAE is among the most water-scarce nations on earth. Annual rainfall averages less than 100 millimetres, groundwater aquifers are severely depleted after decades of extraction for agriculture, and natural freshwater sources are virtually nonexistent. Per capita water consumption, however, is among the highest in the world, driven by urban demand, industrial use, landscaping, and agriculture. This structural mismatch between supply and demand makes desalination not merely an infrastructure choice but an existential requirement for the federation.
Desalinated water provides approximately 42 percent of the UAE’s total water supply, with groundwater (rapidly depleting) and treated wastewater accounting for the remainder. In urban areas, the dependency on desalination exceeds 90 percent. The UAE operates one of the largest desalination networks in the world, with total installed capacity exceeding 10 million cubic metres per day.
Installed Capacity and Major Facilities
| Facility | Emirate | Technology | Capacity (m3/day) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taweelah RO Plant | Abu Dhabi | Reverse Osmosis | ~909,000 |
| Jebel Ali Desalination Complex | Dubai | MSF/MED + RO | ~2,100,000 |
| Umm Al Nar | Abu Dhabi | MSF + RO | ~700,000 |
| Fujairah F2 | Fujairah | MED/RO Hybrid | ~590,000 |
| Shuweihat S3 | Abu Dhabi | RO | ~680,000 |
| Hassyan | Dubai | RO | ~545,000 |
| Mirfa | Abu Dhabi | MSF + RO | ~530,000 |
Abu Dhabi accounts for the majority of national desalination capacity, reflecting its larger geographic footprint, agricultural water demand, and the presence of major industrial and residential centres. Dubai’s capacity is concentrated at the Jebel Ali complex, one of the largest co-generation (power and water) facilities in the world.
Technology Transition: Thermal to Membrane
The UAE’s desalination sector is undergoing a fundamental technology transition. Historically, the country relied on thermal desalination processes, primarily multi-stage flash (MSF) and multi-effect distillation (MED), which were co-located with gas-fired power plants in a cogeneration model. While effective and proven, thermal processes consume significantly more energy per cubic metre of water produced than modern membrane-based alternatives.
Reverse osmosis (RO) has emerged as the preferred technology for all new capacity additions. RO systems use semi-permeable membranes and high-pressure pumps to separate salt from seawater, consuming approximately 3 to 4 kilowatt-hours per cubic metre compared to 15 to 20 kWh for thermal processes.
| Technology | Energy Consumption (kWh/m3) | Share of UAE Capacity (2020) | Share of UAE Capacity (2025 Est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSF (Multi-Stage Flash) | 15-20 | ~55% | ~35% |
| MED (Multi-Effect Distillation) | 8-12 | ~15% | ~12% |
| RO (Reverse Osmosis) | 3-4 | ~30% | ~53% |
The Taweelah RO plant, developed by ACWA Power and TAQA, is one of the world’s largest standalone RO facilities and represents the new paradigm for UAE water infrastructure. Future capacity additions are expected to be exclusively RO-based, driven by superior energy economics and compatibility with renewable energy sources.
Energy-Water Nexus
Desalination is the UAE’s single largest consumer of energy after the power sector itself. The traditional cogeneration model tied water production to fossil fuel combustion, creating a locked-in relationship between hydrocarbon consumption and water supply. The transition to RO technology is partially motivated by the desire to decouple water production from gas-fired power generation, enabling future integration with solar power and reducing the carbon intensity of the water supply.
The Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) in Abu Dhabi and the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) manage the strategic planning and procurement of water capacity. Both entities have incorporated sustainability criteria into procurement processes, with carbon intensity and energy efficiency becoming weighted evaluation factors for new projects.
Cost Economics
The cost of desalinated water has declined significantly with the shift to RO technology. Recent large-scale RO projects in the UAE have achieved water tariffs below $0.50 per cubic metre, representing a substantial reduction from the $1.00 to $1.50 per cubic metre typical of older thermal facilities. However, the end-consumer price of water in the UAE remains heavily subsidised, particularly for UAE nationals, creating a disconnect between production cost and consumption incentives.
| Cost Component | Thermal (MSF/MED) | Reverse Osmosis |
|---|---|---|
| Capital Cost (per m3/day capacity) | $1,200-1,800 | $800-1,200 |
| Energy Cost (per m3 produced) | $0.40-0.60 | $0.10-0.20 |
| Chemical and Maintenance | $0.05-0.10 | $0.03-0.08 |
| Total Levelised Cost (per m3) | $1.00-1.50 | $0.35-0.55 |
Environmental Considerations
Desalination produces brine concentrate, a hypersaline byproduct that is typically discharged into the Arabian Gulf. The cumulative environmental impact of brine discharge from the UAE and neighbouring Gulf states is a growing concern, as elevated salinity levels in enclosed or semi-enclosed marine environments can affect marine ecosystems, particularly coral reefs, seagrass beds, and fisheries.
The UAE has begun implementing more stringent environmental regulations for brine discharge, including dilution requirements, diffuser systems, and monitoring protocols. Research into brine mining, which extracts valuable minerals from concentrate, and zero-liquid-discharge technologies is ongoing but has not yet reached commercial scale.
Strategic Reserves and Redundancy
Water supply disruption represents a critical national security risk. The UAE maintains strategic water reserves equivalent to approximately two to three days of national demand, a figure that authorities are working to extend. The Abu Dhabi government has invested in an aquifer storage and recovery programme that injects desalinated water into underground aquifers for emergency retrieval, providing a buffer of several additional days of supply.
The distributed nature of the desalination network, with facilities spread across multiple emirates and coastal locations, provides geographic redundancy. However, the concentration of capacity at a small number of mega-facilities creates single-point-of-failure risks that would be challenging to mitigate in the event of a major disruption.
Outlook and National Water Strategy
The UAE Water Security Strategy 2036 targets a 21 percent reduction in total water demand, a 100 percent increase in treated wastewater reuse, and the maintenance of strategic reserves sufficient for extended supply disruption. Achieving these targets requires a combination of demand-side management (including tariff reform, smart metering, and efficiency mandates for agriculture and landscaping), continued investment in RO capacity, integration with renewable energy, and technological innovation in brine management and water recycling.
Water security is inseparable from the UAE’s broader sustainability and climate commitments. As the federation pursues Net Zero 2050 targets, the decarbonisation of water production through renewable-powered desalination represents one of the largest and most consequential infrastructure transitions in the national portfolio.