ACWA Power And Nanostone Form A Strategic Research Partnership To Develop The Next Generation Of Seawater Pretreatment Systems

• New technology to be developed in King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)
• Cutting-edge UF Technology delivers reliable high-quality pre-treated water at a lower cost
• Potential to reduce desalination plant energy consumption and carbon footprint
• Purpose fit for commercial adoption in world-scale desalination plants throughout the GCC region
• Positions Saudi Arabia as innovation hub in green technologies globally

ACWA Power, a leading developer, investor, and operator of power generation, water desalination, and green hydrogen plants worldwide, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Nanostone Water Inc., a global membrane solutions company, to perform R&D and knowledge transfer at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), the leading innovation hub in Saudi Arabia, to evaluate Nanostone’s UF ceramic membranes and process technology in seawater desalination applications.

The collaboration between ACWA Power, Nanostone Water Inc. and KAUST further positions Saudi Arabia as a technological and innovation hub in frontier applications for sustainable power, water desalination and green hydrogen, globally. The new partnership pursues applied industry-oriented research to develop a robust pretreatment process for seawater desalination applications with superior protection and an extended lifetime for downstream reverse osmosis membranes.

Thomas Altmann, Executive Vice President of Innovation and New Technology at ACWA Power, and Christian Goebbert, Managing Director, Chief Scientific Officer, and Vice President of Research and Development at Nanostone Water Inc., signed the agreement during the European Desalination Society (EDS) conference in Cyprus. ACWA Power, being a Titanium sponsor, actively supported the conference's mission of promoting "Desalination for the Environment, Clean Water, and Energy."

Nanostone's UF technology provides partners and end-users with a robust solution against variations in water quality, including harmful algal blooms, along with reliable delivery of high-quality pretreated water at a lower total cost of ownership. Both ACWA Power and Nanostone Water aim to capitalise on the outcome of this successful collaboration to jointly promote Nanostone's technology for commercial use in world-scale desalination plants throughout the GCC region. This significant partnership is driven by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's unwavering commitment to advancing sustainable and innovative technologies. It is further propelled by the unique environment that KAUST provides to its local and global partners of the highest caliber. In alignment with its ongoing efforts to address critical global challenges in energy, water, environment, food, health, and the digital realm, KAUST leverages the research activities of its outstanding facilities, including research centers and core laboratories.

ACWA Power is currently producing desalinated water to meet the water needs of 40 million people daily based on average global consumption per household. Presently, it is responsible for fulfilling an estimated 30% of Saudi Arabia’s total water needs.