Energy Makes Up Half of Desalination Plant Costs: Study
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Energy is the largest single expense for desalination plants, accounting for as much as half of the costs to make drinking water from the sea, according to a report.
Desalination plants on average use about 15,000 kilowatt-hours of power for every million gallons of fresh water that’s produced, the Pacific Institute said today in a report. In comparison, wastewater reuse draws as much as 8,300 kilowatt-hours of power for the same volume and importing a similar amount of water into Southern California requires as much as 14,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity, it said.