Challenges: High capital investment

The high capital investment required for setting up desalination plants and related infrastructure is one of the major factors restraining the growth of the global water desalination market. Desalination technologies such as reverse osmosis, multi-stage flash distillation, and multi-effect distillation involve setting up large-scale seawater or brackish water treatment facilities which have huge initial setup costs. For instance, a typical seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant with a daily capacity of 100,000 cubic meters would require an initial investment of over USD 100 million. Such large capital outflows pose significant financial challenges for many municipalities and water utilities worldwide which have limited capital budgets. Additionally, desalination projects also require huge investments in pre-treatment systems, piping networks, and power plants etc. which further escalate project costs.

Opportunities: Technological advancements

Technological advancements have opened up great opportunities for growth in the global water desalination market. However, significant progress is being made in desalination technologies that can help tackle water scarcity issues in a sustainable manner. Various membrane distillation techniques are gaining ground as they allow desalination of seawater at much lower energy inputs compared to traditional thermal distillation methods. For example, solar thermal desalination plants coupled with membrane distillation are proving highly effective in arid coastal regions. Such plants have been set up in Spain, Australia and Mexico to provide potable water for local communities. The energy requirements for desalination reduce substantially, making these decentralized water production setups financially and environmentally more viable. At the same time, continued R&D is improving reverse osmosis technology which currently accounts for over half of worldwide desalination capacity. Thinner and more efficient membranes improve productivity while lowering power consumption. Pre-treatment innovations ensure membrane lifespan is extended. Integration with renewable energy can further reduce carbon footprint of desalination. For instance, the Hareswil desalination plant in Switzerland runs entirely on solar and hydropower. As per the UN World Water Development Report 2022, seawater desalination currently provides over 300 million cubic meters of potable water per day globally and is expected to grow rapidly to meet escalating demands.