Toray Industries has received reverse osmosis (RO) membrane supply order for Rabigh 3 Desalination Plant in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Not only will the 600,000m3/day desalination plant be the largest seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) plant in the country, according to Toray, it will also be one of the largest SWRO plants in the world.
Toray Membrane Middle East (TMME), Toray’s local subsidiary located in Dammam, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, will supply the RO membranes and provide technical services. In keeping with its company principle of reinforcing local services, TMME will supply locally-manufactured product, provide commissioning support and autopsy service to help address water shortages in the Middle East, which will also ultimately contribute to stable energy supplies in the world.
Background
Gulf countries have been investing extensively in infrastructure to cater to rising populations. They have been pushing ahead with plans to build desalination plant to secure sufficient drinking water. With increasing awareness of environmental footprints and cost reduction, construction of RO desalination plants which consume less energy than conventional evaporation method has increased.
The award of RO membrane supply order for Rabigh 3 Desalination Plant was realised from Toray’s desalination reference over a decade, operation record, and efficient proposal based on past experience in the region.
Looking ahead
Over the years, Toray has expanded its RO membrane sales, production, and technical support to help address water issues around the globe. Applications extend from desalination, wastewater reclamation and industrial usage, achieving the total accumulated water production capacity of over 91,400,000m3/day, which is equivalent to serve the water needs of 640 million people, or around 8% of the world’s population.
Ensuring supplies of safe and clean water is Toray’s top theme announced both in Toray Group Sustainability Vision in July 2018, and in Toray Vision 2030 in May last year. The company will continue supplying RO membranes and other advanced membrane products while strengthening technical services to meet local demand, striving to overcome the challenges of ever-growing water demand in the Middle East.
