Tag Archives: Saudi Arabia

Vanishing Aquifers in MENA

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Aquifers are of tremendous importance for the MENA as world’s most water-stressed countries are located in the region, including Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iran, Lebanon and Yemen. However, aquifers in MENA are coming under increasing strain and are in real danger of extinction. Eight aquifers systems, including those in MENA, are categorized as ‘over stressed’ aquifers with hardly any natural recharge to offset the water consumed. Aquifers in MENA Aquifers stretched beneath Saudi Arabia and Yemen ranks first among ‘overstressed’ aquifers followed by Indus Basin of northwestern India-Pakistan and then by Murzuk-Djado Basin in North Africa. The Nubian Sandstone Aquifer in … Continue reading →

Energy Efficiency in Saudi Cement Industry

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Saudi Arabia is the largest construction market in the Middle East, with large development projects under way and many more in the planning stage. The cement industry in Saudi Arabia is evolving rapidly and annual clinker production was 75 million tonnes in 2018. The cement industry is one of the highest energy-intensive industries in the world, with fuel and energy costs typically representing 30-40% of total production costs. On an average, the specific electrical energy consumption typically ranges between 90 and 130 kWh per tonne of cement. Keeping in view the huge energy demand of the cement industry, the Saudi … Continue reading →

Agricultural Biomass in MENA

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Agriculture plays an important role in the economies of most of the countries in the Middle East and North Africa region.  Despite the fact that MENA is the most water-scarce and dry region in the world, many countries in the region, especially those around the Mediterranean Sea, are highly dependent on agriculture. The contribution of the agricultural sector to the overall economy varies significantly among countries in the region, ranging, for example, from about 3.2 percent in Saudi Arabia to 13.4 percent in Egypt.  Large scale irrigation coupled with mechanization has enabled extensive production of high-value cash crops, including fruits, … Continue reading →

Saudi Arabia Biorefinery from Algae (SABA) Project

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The King Abdulaziz City for Science & Technology (KACST) is funding an innovative project called Saudi Arabia Biorefinery from Algae (SABA Project) to screen for lipid hyper-producers species in Saudi Arabia coastal waters. These species will be the basis for next-generation algal biofuel production. The goal of this project is to increase research and training in microalgae-based biofuel production as well algal biomass with an additional goal of using a biorefinery approach that could strongly enhance Saudi Arabia economy, society and environment within the next 10 years. The primary mission of the SABA project is to develop the Algae Based … Continue reading →

Recycling Attitudes in Saudi Arabia: A Survey

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The waste management and recycling industry in Saudi Arabia is underestimated source of income. The continued increase in population and industrial development in the Kingdom has increased individual waste generation manifolds in the past few decades. The shortage of recycling industries in Saudi Arabia cost around SR 40 billion. The focus of Saudi recycling industry is plastic, papers and metals. If recycling industry targeted only plastic and paper and metals they can meet the need of the Saudi market efficiently. According to Arab League, recycling industry in Saudi Arabia can save over 500 million SR just from iron, paper and … Continue reading →

Biomass Potential of Date Palm Wastes

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Date palm is one of the principal agricultural products in the arid and semi-arid region of the world, especially Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. There are more than 120 million date palm trees worldwide yielding several million tons of dates per year, apart from secondary products including palm midribs, leaves, stems, fronds and coir. The Arab world has more than 84 million date palm trees with the majority in Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and United Arab Emirates. Egypt is the world’s largest date producer with annual production of 1.47 million tons of dates in … Continue reading →

Biomass Energy in Middle East

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The major biomass producing countries in the Middle East are Egypt, Yemen, Iraq, Syria and Jordan. Traditionally, biomass energy has been widely used in rural areas for domestic energy purposes in the Middle East region, especially in Egypt, Yemen and Jordan. Since most of the region is arid or semi-arid, the biomass energy potential is mainly contributed by municipal solid wastes, agricultural residues and industrial wastes. According to conservative estimates, the potential of biomass energy in the MENA region is about 400TWh per year. Municipal solid wastes represent the best source of biomass in Middle East countries. Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, … Continue reading →

Solid Waste Management Challenges in GCC

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The challenges posed by solid waste to governments and communities are many and varied. In the GCC region, where most countries have considerably high per capita waste generation values, the scale of the waste management challenge faced by civic authorities is even bigger. Fast-paced industrial growth, recent construction boom, increasing population, rapid urbanisation, and vastly improved lifestyle coupled with unsustainable consumption patterns have all contributed to the growing waste crisis in the GCC. Among the GCC nations, United Arab Emirates has the highest municipal solid waste generation per capita of 2.2 kg (which is among the highest worldwide) followed closely … Continue reading →

Future of Urban Transportation in Saudi Arabia

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Transportation sector has played a prominent role in the socio-economic development of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. However, there are a wide range of current and future issues which should be tackled to ensure sustainable development in the country. More than 75% of the total population of Saudi Arabia lives in urban areas. Given the worldwide trends and statistics on urban population growth, many have regarded the 21st century as the urban century, understanding the prominence and importance urban areas have played and will continue to play in the future. Therefore, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia must focus its attention in … Continue reading →

Future Water Scenarios in GCC

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Water is an important vector in the socio-economic development and for supporting the ecosystem. In the arid to extremely arid Arabian Peninsula, home of the GCC countries, the importance and value of water is even more pronounced. The GCC countries of United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, and Kuwait, are facing the most severe water shortages in the world.  Rainfall scarcity and variability coupled with high evaporation rates have characterized this part of the world with a limited availability of renewable water.  However, the scarcity of renewable water resources is not the only distinctive characteristic of the region, … Continue reading →

Environmental Challenges in Saudi Arabia’s Oil and Gas Industry

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Despite the efforts of global society and scientists to reduce the dependency on oil and gas as a main source of energy and find new green and renewable energy sources, the oil remains the most effective one. The oil production rate has increased incrementally from the 1970s to the 2020s, which is driven by the demand for oil. A Global Problem The main problem with the dependence on oil and gas as a primary source of energy lies in the huge pollution caused by the industry. For example, oil enterprises and petroleum companies currently release about 2000 tons of chemicals … Continue reading →

Introduction to Biorefinery

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A biorefinery is a facility that integrates biomass conversion processes and equipment to produce fuels, power, and value-added chemicals from biomass. Biorefinery is analogous to today’s petroleum refinery, which produces multiple fuels and products from petroleum. By producing several products, a biorefinery takes advantage of the various components in biomass and their intermediates, therefore maximizing the value derived from the biomass feedstock. A biorefinery could, for example, produce one or several low-volume, but high-value, chemical products and a low-value, but high-volume liquid transportation fuel such as biodiesel or bioethanol. At the same time, it can generate electricity and process heat, … Continue reading →