City-scale multi-stage thermal desalination in Kuwait
Desalinización térmica multietapa a escala urbana en Kuwait
- Date
- c. 1957-1960 · confidence low
- Place
- Shuwaikh, Kuwait City, Kuwait
- Credited to
- Kuwait; British engineering
- Field
- Matter & energy
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
Kuwait was one of the first countries to supply a city with distilled seawater through multi-stage flash (MSF) plants coupled to power stations. It solved the lack of fresh water in a state without rivers.
The date of the first city-scale MSF plant is uncertain (1953-1960, depending on source) and the MSF technique was developed earlier in the UK and US; this entry records its city-scale use in Kuwait. Marked as low confidence.
What it led to
- spread of thermal desalination across the Gulf (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar)
- cogeneration of electricity and water, and its environmental impact
- the Gulf states' water dependence and the development of reverse osmosis