Facing one of the century’s most daunting challenges, Egypt is making a high-stakes bet on seawater desalination to ease its deepening water crisis.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced that the nation aims to expand the country’s desalinated water output more than sevenfold within five years, a plan that could reshape how the nation of 105 million sustains itself in a warming, water-stressed region.
Egypt’s water deficit is stark. Officials estimate the country requires about 114 billion cubic meters of water each year, yet it has access to barely half that amount. The per capita share has already fallen to around 500 cubic meters annually, which is less than half the internationally recognized “water poverty” line of 1,000 cubic meters.
Nearly all of Egypt’s fresh water comes from the Nile, a river increasingly strained by climate change, upstream dam projects, and the demands of a growing population.
Egypt currently produces about 1.4 million cubic meters of desalinated water per day; however, the country needs at least 10 million cubic meters daily by 2030 to meet surging demand. The long-term goal is even more ambitious, with the plan to produce 30 million cubic meters per day, requiring billions of dollars in investment and the localization of advanced desalination technologies.
The government began charting a national desalination strategy in 2017, starting with plants capable of producing just over one million cubic meters a day. The program extends through mid-century in six successive five-year phases, designed to ramp up supply as Egypt urbanizes and industrializes.
Today, roughly 100 plants are already in operation, with a combined capacity of about 1.2 million cubic meters per day, according to government figures. Most are clustered in coastal governorates such as Matrouh, South Sinai, the Red Sea, and Alexandria, that is, areas where piping Nile water over hundreds of kilometers would be prohibitively expensive.
That urgency was highlighted on 1 September in Tianjin, a city in China, where Madbouly met with Ni Chen, chairman of the China Energy Engineering Corporation (CEEC), one of the world’s largest infrastructure firms, while attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Plus Meeting.
The Chinese executive announced that his company intends to invest USD 1 billion (EGP 48.16 billion) in Egypt over the next five years, with a major share of that funding directed toward desalination projects alongside renewable energy and storage systems.
Additionally, Madbouly also held talks with Qingyun Kong, head of another Chinese firm specializing in desalination. Kong outlined a modular plant design that can process 10,000 cubic meters per day using renewable energy, and could be scaled up to meet Egypt’s larger targets. The prime minister proposed direct consultations between the company and Egyptian authorities to explore potential cooperation.
Desalination is a technical fix and a strategic imperative for Egypt. With the Nile under pressure from climate change and upstream dam projects, Egyptian leaders are working to diversify the country’s water supply while safeguarding food security, according to Sherif El-Sherbini, Minister of Housing.
“We must localize desalination technology,” Madbouly said, stressing that his government will offer incentives to foreign firms that commit to manufacturing plant components inside Egypt.
CEEC, which has already completed 14 projects in Egypt since 2009 and recently moved its regional headquarters to Cairo, said it was prepared to cooperate closely with the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy on new desalination plants. The company’s chairman cast the partnership as part of a broader global portfolio, noting that similar projects are underway in other water-stressed regions.
So far, desalinated water in Egypt is used sparingly for drinking. Instead, it has been directed toward supporting coastal cities, agricultural projects, and industry, where demand is rising fastest.
Newer, centralized plants aim to cut land use, reduce costs, and ensure water does not have to be transported more than 50 kilometers, minimizing loss. Another aim is to reroute Nile water that once supplied coastal towns to farms and growing urban centers inland.
Egypt’s push reflects a broader shift in how Middle Eastern nations are approaching water and energy. By tying desalination to renewable power, Egypt plans to reduce the heavy carbon footprint of conventional plants while ensuring long-term sustainability.
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