KUALA LUMPUR — The Saudi Water Authority has claimed five international honors for breakthroughs in water technology, energy efficiency, and resource recovery from desalination waste.
The awards were presented to the authority’s research arm, the Water Technologies Innovation and Advanced Research Institute (Watira), during the fourth Asian Water Awards and the 2026 Asian Power Awards held in Kuala Lumpur.
Among the winning projects is a drinking-water enrichment system that leverages nanotechnology to extract magnesium from seawater. Recognized as “Innovation of the Year,” the system is being deployed at industrial scale for the first time globally at the Shuaibah Production System — Phase Four, a facility with a daily capacity of 400,000 cubic meters serving over 1.3 million people.
Another project, honored for “Excellence in Water Technology — Research and Development,” produces sodium hypochlorite for disinfection and high-purity hydrogen from desalination brine in a single integrated system, cutting energy consumption by 25 percent compared to conventional methods.
The authority also secured the “Leadership in the Circular Economy” award for a pilot project extracting rubidium chloride from desalination waste using advanced separation and filtration. The process achieves a recovery rate of 89.02 percent and 99.984 percent purity, with an estimated annual output of 17.95 kilograms and a projected net present value of $831,000 over a decade.
The Water Oasis in Rabigh was named “Water Innovation Centre of the Year.” Spanning more than 33,000 square meters, the complex houses over 23 advanced laboratories and large-scale pilot plants, and holds the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest water innovation oasis.
The “Waterthon” initiative earned the “Collaborative Water Initiative of the Year” award after drawing over 1,300 participants who generated more than 766 ideas, supported by 30 mentors, 10 judges, and representatives from over five universities.
According to the authority, the Saudi Water Innovation Center has incubated 43 water-sector startups and collected over 400 ideas from 15 countries. It has also launched three specialized incubators in partnership with the National Water Company, the National Center for Water Efficiency and Conservation, and the General Organization for Irrigation.
The accolades underscore the authority’s commitment to translating research into practical applications, enhancing resource efficiency, and developing economically and environmentally sustainable uses for desalination by-products.
