Red Sea Development Co. inaugurates first 100% renewable bottled water plant in Saudi Arabia

JEDDAH: The Red Sea Development Co. (TRSDC) announced the first mineral water extraction plant using solar and wind energy in the Kingdom as part of efforts to preserve the environment by limiting carbon emissions.

Ahmed Ghazi Darwish, chief of administrative office at TRSDC, said the project was launched in collaboration with Source Global, PBC, which specializes in renewable drinking water.

Darwish said the water extraction technology used by TRSDC would fully depend on solar energy to raise condensation levels on hydrogen panels to produce high-quality fresh water.

The solar-powered plant will be the largest of its kind in the world, with a production capacity of 2 million 330 milliliter water bottles a year, he added. The annual production of 300,000 bottles will begin in the coming years.

Reusable bottles will help achieve carbon neutrality as part of the sustainable model.

Experts selected a plot of land during the first phase of the plant’s construction, with 100 hydrogen panels placed after a virtual survey carried out by specialists according to the plant’s specifications and requirements.

A total of 1,200 hydrogen panels will be added during the second and third phases, and the plant will be provided with the necessary components and reusable bottles by companies operating in the Kingdom.

The performance of the panels would be monitored through a smart application showing the volume of water produced, the environmental impact of the panels and maintenance alerts.

The technology is wholly sourced from Saudi companies, and conforms to local and international water quality standards, including those of the GCC Standardization Organization, the World Health Organization, the Saudi Food and Drug Authority, and the Saudi Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture.