A wave of cross-border deals is pushing Gulf desalination expertise onto the world stage, signaling a strategic pivot by the region's utilities from domestic problem-solving to global profit-making. In late August, Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) agreed to buy Spanish water firm GS Inima for $1.2 billion, while Dubai-based AMEA Power unveiled a $200 million desalination venture in Angola just days later, following a new project in Morocco.
According to Al-Monitor, the super-arid Gulf — long a global leader in domestic desalination — is now exporting that know-how as water emerges as a critical sector in a warming world. The trend also includes Saudi Arabia's ACWA Power targeting new water markets across Asia.
The momentum draws on decades of hard-won experience at home. Over roughly 45 years, Gulf states turned severe scarcity into a managed system that meets rising demand through large-scale desalination and efficiency gains. Companies such as TAQA and ACWA Power have become world-class builders and operators of desalination plants, a capability that may now be even more advanced than their energy portfolios. The International Energy Agency estimates that approximately 21,000 desalination plants operate in around 150 countries today, with roughly half of the global installed capacity located in the Middle East and North Africa.
TAQA's purchase of Madrid-based GS Inima is a marquee foray. The company brings 50 active projects across 10 countries, from Spain to the United States and Brazil, along with stable, long-term concessions. The deal adds 171 million imperial gallons per day (MIGD) of desalination capacity, 264 MIGD of drinking water capacity, and 572 MIGD of wastewater and industrial treatment. TAQA says GS Inima's digital tools and research focus should generate long-term value as it builds a "world-class, integrated global water platform."
The Emirati utility has been expanding its footprint elsewhere as well. In May, it signed agreements in Morocco to develop desalination with local partners. In March, it inked a deal in Uzbekistan to deliver a raw water transmission pipeline and a water treatment plant.
AMEA Power is likewise expanding fast. On Aug. 27, it announced a joint venture with Spain's Coxabengoa (Cox) to build and operate a seawater desalination plant in Angola with a capacity of 100,000 cubic meters per day, expected to supply nearly 800,000 people. Earlier in August, AMEA entered the second phase of the Agadir Desalination Project in Morocco, targeting 400,000 cubic meters per day, powered by its 150-megawatt wind project in Laayoune. This linkage may draw scrutiny given Western Sahara's disputed status.
Saudi developer ACWA Power is also positioning for scale. In May 2025, it signed strategic partnership agreements with Malaysian companies that include potential large-scale desalination projects. In July, Chairman Mohammad Abunayyan announced that the company plans a significant expansion into China, where water desalination is set to be a core investment focus.
Falling technology costs and maturing business models mean the focus abroad is now on returns, diversification, and soft power. The stakes are rising: the Global Commission on the Economics of Water warns demand for fresh water could exceed supply by 40% as early as 2030. Risks remain, from environmental concerns — including emissions from fossil-fueled plants and the impact of brine on marine ecosystems — to political sensitivities over foreign control of essential assets. The Gulf's own heavy reliance on desalination also leaves it exposed to shocks, highlighted by recent regional tensions that raised fears of contamination in shared waters. Even so, Gulf utilities are betting that exporting water expertise will be as strategic — and lucrative — as oil in the decades ahead.
Photo: Generated by Gemini AI.