JEDDAH, 16 December 2003 — Water problems in the Asir region, which has more than two million inhabitants and attracts another two million tourists annually, will be solved in five years, says Water and Electricity Minister Dr. Ghazi Al-Gosaibi.
Speaking to reporters after signing a number of water contracts worth more than SR263 million, he said new projects would increase water supply in the region to 240,000 cubic meters.
“I know well the water problem in the Asir region. A number of steps will be taken to solve it and ensure water security in the region,” the minister said after signing the contracts in Abha.
The contracts included two dams, one in Tihama’s Marba valley costing SR86.97 million, and another in Atoud valley costing SR77.63 million and a sewage network in Uhd Rafeeda.
Projects to supply adequate amounts of water in southwestern Asir are significant as the region accommodates a number of tourist resorts. People in the region depend mainly on supplies from 57 dams as well as from the desalination plant in Shaqeek, which pumps 100,000 cubic meters of water daily.
“The present projects are not enough to satisfy the water requirements of people in the region,” the Saudi Press Agency quoted the minister as saying. “There is no quick solution to the problem. God willing, within five years, efforts will be made to supply adequate amounts of water to solve most of these problems,” he said.
Al-Gosaibi said the dams in Marba and Atoud, which will be completed in three years, would supply 40,000 cubic meters of water daily. The second desalination plant in Shaqeek designed to supply 100,000 cubic meters of water daily, will be ready in four years. The minister said new water projects worth SR400 million would be implemented in the region next year. The projects will include water pipelines, pumping stations, sewage networks and water treatment plants.
The proposed Tathleeth water project will cost of SR250 million, Al-Gosaibi said, adding that the next budget would allocate SR77 million for it.
Saudi Arabia is now the world’s largest producer of desalinated water. Desalination meets 70 percent of the Kingdom’s present drinking water needs. Several new desalination plants are under construction. There are 30 desalination plants in the Kingdom, which supply water to more than 50 cities and distribution centers. They also meet 20 percent of the Kingdom’s electricity needs. In the the next few years, the Kingdom’s output from desalination plants is expected to reach more than one billion gallons of water daily.