국제담수화협회(IDA)와 세계물정보(GWI)의 DesalData의 신규 자료에 의거하면 2013년 한 해 동안 온라인상으로 예상되는 새로운 담수용량의 규모는 작년의 총량보다 50% 더 많다.
따라서 2012년도의 400만㎥3/d와 비교해볼 경우, 담수처리공장은 2013년 한 해 동안 1일당 600만㎥의 총 용량을 처리할 것으로 온라인상으로 예상된다.
따라서 2012년도의 400만㎥3/d와 비교해볼 경우, 담수처리공장은 2013년 한 해 동안 1일당 600만㎥의 총 용량을 처리할 것으로 온라인상으로 예상된다.
신규용량은 28개월 동안 런던에 내린 강우량 또는 뉴욕 시에서 19개월 동안 내린 강우량과 동일한 담수를 생성해낼 수 있었다. 또한 그것은 전 세계의 모든 위임된 1만7천277개의 담수처리공장들의 총량인 8천90만㎥/d을 차지하며 런던의 32년 동안 강우량과 거의 비슷하거나 또는 뉴욕의 21년 동안의 강우량을 조금 상회하는 규모이다.
[원문보기]
Global desalination capacity growing substantially, finds study
According to new data from the International Desalination Association, the amount of new desalination capacity expected to come online during 2013 is 50 percent more than last year's total. Desalination plants with a total capacity of 6 million cubic meters per day (m3/d) are expected to come online during 2013, compared with 4 million m3/d in 2012.
The markets which are expected to see the fastest growth in desalination over the next five years are South Africa, Jordan, Mexico, Libya, Chile, India, and China, all of which are expected to more than double their desalination capacity.
The new capacity could produce the same amount of freshwater as falls on London in 28 months or 19 months of rain on New York City. It takes the total capacity of all 17,277 commissioned desalination plants in the world for 80.9 million m3/d, which is nearly 32 years of rain for London or just over 21 years of rain in New York.
While this year's growth is somewhat lower than 2010, when 6.5 million m3/d of new capacity was completed, the data shows that demand for desalination continues to grow. An increasing proportion of that growth is coming from the industrial sector. Since 2010, 45 percent of new desalination plants have been ordered by industrial users, such as power stations and refineries, while in the previous four years, only 27 percent of new capacity was ordered by industrial water users.
Industrial applications for desalination grew to 7.6 million m3/d for 2010-2013 compared with 5.9 million m3/d for 2006-2009. Of the 7.6 million m3/d, the power industry accounted for 16%; oil & gas, 12% (up from 7% from 2006-2009); mining & metals, 11%; refining & chemicals, 11%; electronics, 5%; and food & beverage, 3%. Other industrial applications accounted for the remaining 40%.
Seawater desalination continues to represent the largest percentage of online global capacity at 59%, followed by brackish water at 22%, river water at 9%, and wastewater and pure water at 5% each.
The top 10 seawater desalination countries by online capacity are:
| Country | Commissioned seawater desalination capacity m3/d |
| Saudi Arabia | 9,170,391 |
| UAE | 8,381,299 |
| Spain | 3,781,314 |
| Kuwait | 2,586,761 |
| Algeria | 2,364,055 |
| Australia | 1,823,154 |
| Qatar | 1,780,708 |
| Israel | 1,532,723 |
| China | 1,494,198 |
| Libya | 1,048,424 |
The markets which are expected to see the fastest growth in desalination over the next five years are South Africa, Jordan, Mexico, Libya, Chile, India, and China, all of which are expected to more than double their desalination capacity.
The new Desalination Inventory is being released in the week leading up to the 2013 IDA World Congress, which takes place October 20-25 in Tianjin, China, where these and other developments will be explored during a four-day Technical Program and the latest technologies showcased in the World Congress Exhibition.