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RENEWABLE

Desalination goes green

and water tariffs go down

The new transition to renewable This decrease in tariffs has been paralleled by a
or low energy desalination continuous decrease in the specific energy con-
sumption required by the process. Figure 2
offers another opportunity below shows the historical evolution of the ener-
for the consolidated experience gy consumption in the desalination technology
against different processes used.
of italian manufacturers
The decrease in tariffs has
been paralleled by a continuous
“decrease in the specific energy
Corrado Sommariva, CEO and Founder, Sustai- consumption required by the
nable water and Power Consultant (SWPC)
desalination process

Gradually thermal desalination plants were aban-
nly in 2018, breaking the threshold doned and SWRO became predominant in the
of $0.50 US$/m3 product water area with tremendous impact on both energy con-
from desalination was considered sumption and water costs. .
an almost unbeatable target for the The major credit for this development goes to Sau-
desalination industry. di Water Partnership company (SWPC) who has
OA little more than a year after as it shaken the industry in terms of electric power effi-
can be seen from Figure 1 below, and in the midst ciency. The minimum threshold of 3.5 kWh/m set
3
of COVID 19 and a global recession, Hassyan iWP by SWPC in 2018 as a requirement for tenders, ac-
tariffs achieved a new record-low tariff below $ 0.3/ ceptance was at the time considered “on the edge”
3
Figure 1: tariff evolution m , effectively thrashing all previous records and if not unachievable by the industry.
3
desal market demolishing also the 0.4 US$/m benchmark.
The major credit for this
development goes to Saudi
“Water Partnership company
(SWPC), who has shaken the
industry in terms of electric
power efficiency

In the past cost of energy was considered very
low. A typical value of 0.5 US$/MBU was the
benchmark in 1990 till 2000. This was not an in-
centive to increase efficiency in desalination plants.
As electricity was given a more realistic price of
0.05 US$/kWh, power consumption became as it
can be seen in Figure 3 below, one of the most
significant contributors in the water tariff, it turned
out that optimizing energy was not only good for

48 48 Impiantistica Italiana - Luglio-Agosto 2021