Alfanar to build 110 MW of solar for desalination plant in Saudi Arabia

Alfanar has revealed plans to set up a solar project including ground-mounted and floating PV to provide power to the Al Jubail 2 water desalination plant on the east coast of Saudi Arabia. It will require an investment of SAR 1.2 billion ($319 million).

The Al Jubail water desalination plant

Image: Acciona

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Alfanar has won a contract from Saudi Arabia Saline Water Conversion Corp. (SWCC) to build a 110 MW PV project. Most of the installation will be ground-mounted, with an undisclosed portion reserved for floating solar. The project will provide electricity to desalinate seawater through reverse osmosis at the Jubail 2 Desalination Plant, which is owned by SWCC.

The investment has been estimated at SAR 1.2 billion. The project will also include a 380 kV substation and 173 kilometers of overhead transmission lines.

“Alfanar is one of the first Saudi companies to invest in renewable energy across the Kingdom,” said the Saudi energy infrastructure specialist.

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The Jubail plant is one of the largest desalination plants in the world, with a production capacity of 1 million cubic meters of water per day. PV is expected to provide electricity to the plant at a lower consumption rate of 2.16 kWh/m3.

Saudi Arabia’s cumulative installed PV capacity reached 439 MW at the end of 2021, according to data from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

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