China Desalinates Water to Ease Coastal Shortages

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As of the end of 2005, China was desalinating 120,000 cubic meters of seawater daily, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country’s top economic planner, told the People’s Daily. According to the government’s plan on seawater utilization, by 2010, desalination capacity in China will reach 800,000 to 1 million cubic meters daily, and direct use of sea water will reach 55 billion cubic meters annually. Desalinated water would help ease water scarcity in coastal areas by making up for 16–24 percent of the existing shortage.

A major hindrance to the development of seawater desalination in China is the high cost of the practice. The current cost is 5 RMB (US$0.63) per ton, far exceeding the tap water tariff. “Of all the costs involved in sea water desalination, the energy cost accounts for more than half,” Qu Wei, chief engineer with Qingdao Engineering Consulting Institute, told the Economic Observer. Experts believe it is essential to cut the associated energy costs in order to make desalination commercially feasible.

China has suffered from serious water constraints in recent years. The country’s per capita water availability stands at 2,200 cubic meters, about a quarter of the world average. About two-thirds of China’s 660 or so cities, most of which are located in coastal areas, report water shortages. Chinese industries lost 200 billion yuan (US$24.7 billion) in output value annually from 2001 to 2005 due to water shortages, according to State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.