Neom to Adopt Unique ‘Solar Dome’ Desalination Plant

The Neom smart-city project will use cutting-edge solar technology to power a desalination plant that produces clean, low-cost, environmentally friendly freshwater. The decision aims to enhance the megacity’s position as a new global tourism destination, a center of innovation and environmental conservation, and as an accelerator of human progress.

Neom signed an agreement with UK business Solar Water Limited to build a desalination plant in the northwest of the Kingdom that uses the newly developed “solar dome” technology. It is hoped that thef first-of-its-kind, completely sustainable and carbon-neutral facility will shape the future of desalination in Neom, the Kingdom and throughout the world.

Work on the solar dome project will begin in February and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. The technology it employs will significantly reduce the environmental impact of the desalination process by producing less saline solution, a byproduct that can harm natural ecosystems.

The pioneering and innovative approach from Solar Water Limited, which was developed at Cranfield University in the UK, represents the first widespread use of concentrated solar power technology in desalination, Neom said.

Seawater is pumped into a hydrological solar dome made of glass and steel, where it is heated and evaporated to remove the salt. The process can continue at night thanks to the storage of solar energy generated throughout the day. The technology helps to prevent any damage to marine life as it does not dump saline solution created by the process back into the sea.

“Neom’s adoption of the experimental version of this program supports the sustainability goals set by the Ministry in the Kingdom, as shown in the National Water Strategy 2030, and is fully in line with the sustainable-development goals set by the United Nations,” said Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Abdulrahman Al-Fadhli.

Neom CEO Nadhmi Al-Nasr said that the megacity project has easy access to abundant amounts of seawater and completely renewable energy resources, which puts it in the ideal position to produce low-cost and sustainable fresh water using solar-powered desalination.

He added that the adoption of this type of technology reflects Neom’s commitment to supporting innovation, protecting the environment and preserving its purity to provide a comfortable and exceptional life. It also raises the possibility of using the technology in other parts of Saudi Arabia in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture.

David Reavley, the CEO of Solar Water Ltd, said: “Currently, thousands of desalination plants around the world rely heavily on burning fossil fuels for water extraction, and we have the technology to desalinate water in a way that is completely sustainable and 100 percent carbon neutral."

“We are happy to partner with Neom, which has a strong vision of what the new future looks like in harmony and integration with nature.”

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said on Friday that the US economy is not showing signs of overheating, so central bank officials should be wary of keeping restrictive policy in place longer than necessary.

“You don't want to tighten any longer than you have to,” Goolsbee told National Public Radio in an interview. “And the reason you'd want to tighten is if you're afraid the economy is overheating, and this is not what an overheating economy looks like to me.”

Goolsbee declined to say whether he would press for an interest rate cut at the Fed's coming meeting on Sept. 17-18.

But his remarks were consistent with his recent comments that officials need to be increasingly attuned to signs like the rising unemployment rate and increases in credit card delinquencies that suggest the economy is slowing to a point where policy should not be as restrictive as it is now.

The Fed has held its policy rate in the current range of 5.25% to 5.50% since July 2023 after raising to that level at a breakneck pace over the prior 16 months to combat the worst outbreak of inflation since the 1980s.

Financial markets are now 100% priced for a rate cut next month, with the main debate being over what size - a quarter percentage point or a half point. Odds now favor the smaller cut, but a big signal on the Fed's next move is likely to come next Friday when Fed Chair Jerome Powell delivers a keynote address at the Kansas City Fed's annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Neom to Adopt Unique ‘Solar Dome’ Desalination Plant