King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) and ACWA Power Company have signed an agreement to establish a joint “Clean Energy and Water Desalination Technologies Development Center”.
KACST Vice President for the Energy and Industry Sector Dr. Saeed Al-Shehri and Executive Vice President of Innovation and New Technology Sector at ACWA Power Thomas Altmann signed the agreement in a ceremony attended by KACST President Dr. Munir bin Mahmoud Al-Desouki, ACWA Power Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors Mohammad Abunayyan, and Senior Vice President for the Research and Development Sector of KACST Dr. Talal Al-Sudairi.
The center will conduct studies and scientific research, and work to attain technical development in vital areas in the clean energy and water sector, including developing solar energy technologies, energy storage technologies to support future energy networks, and innovative technologies and materials for desalination membranes, to reduce costs and emissions of desalination processes.
Thomas Altmann Executive Vice President Innovation & New Technology ACWA Power
“We are thrilled to embark on an exciting journey with an esteemed organization such as KACST, as collaboration is key to our approach to research and development. The partnership aims to develop practical, market-ready solutions to address commercial needs with agility and innovation. It also seeks to contribute to the local research and innovation ecosystem, in line with the objectives of Vision 2030. Utilizing both organizations’ collective expertise and resources, the collaboration will focus on optimizing joint programs by developing services, pilot plants, laboratories, and cutting-edge simulation and monitoring tools.”
The center will employ artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies to help the process of research and achieve goals. The joint center also aims to increase the contribution of ACWA Power in the complex of national laboratories and innovation oases, to spread the culture of cooperation and innovation in the academic community and the business sector, and to transfer innovative water desalination technology to various areas of the industrial sector.
Saeed Al-Shehri said that the center created jointly with ACWA Power, the leading company in the field of energy transformation, is part of KACST’s efforts to link technical products to the needs of public and private sector entities, and to achieve national aspirations in the field of research, development and innovation by utilizing KACST’s laboratories, scientists, incubator programs and technology accelerators to develop environment friendly and sustainable technologies for water desalination and clean energy production, thus helping reach the optimal energy mix that the Kingdom seeks.
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