Jeddah water consumption double the European average

The per capita water consumption in Jeddah is nearly twice the European average, according to Water and Electricity Minister Abdullah bin Abdul Rahman Al-Hussayen.
Al-Hussayen made the comments during an inspection Sunday of the water desalination project in the city launched recently by Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal.
“With the massive expansion in the production of desalinated water and its high cost, we are still trying to keep up with the demand for water due to our excessive domestic consumption."
"For example, the rate of consumption in the city of Jeddah increased from 200 liters per capita per day in 2008 to more than 300 liters per capita at the beginning of this year, a rise that is unjustified, and that has nothing to do whatsoever with the growing population; because as the population increases so does water production.”
He added that Saudi Arabia has been producing desalinated water since 1927, with output jumping from 300,000 cubic meters per day to more than five million cubic meters. The Kingdom is the world leader in this field, producing almost 20 percent of global production.
He said that the reverse osmosis plant in Jeddah, which cost nearly SR 1 billion, has the production capacity of 240,000 cubic meters per day, with an additional capacity of 20 percent if needed.
He said Jeddah's consumption is more than 1.2 million cubic meters per day, which translates to per capita use of more than 300 liters per day.
Al-Hussayen said that the budget for the Saline Water Conversion Corporation for this year includes a new desalination plant with a capacity of 600,000 cubic meters per day. Development is underway to raise production to one million cubic meters per day to meet the needs of the city’s main area and some provinces, bringing the production of plants in the region to about three million cubic meters per day.