Electricity Minister probes desalination cooperation with HydroVolta

On Saturday, September 19, 2026, Egypt's Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy, Mahmoud Esmat, met with HydroVolta's CEO, George Brik, to discuss collaboration in desalination projects. The two sides explored the potential for utilizing existing electricity generation facilities for desalination and investigated methods to extract valuable minerals and chemicals from the byproducts of the desalination process.

HydroVolta showcased its innovative SonixED technology, a system that employs electrical separation and ultrasound to efficiently remove salts and impurities from water. The Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy praised the technology for its ability to minimize salt accumulation, reduce chemical usage, and lower energy consumption during the treatment process. The system also boasts the ability to process highly saline groundwater and generate water suitable for both drinking and irrigation purposes.

The meeting also covered Egypt's ambitious plan to expand its desalination capacity to 10 million cubic meters of water per day by 2050. The initial phase aims to achieve 3.35 million cubic meters per day, which could involve utilizing waste from the desalination process to produce additional chemicals, thereby minimizing the need for imported materials. A subsequent phase would focus on extracting and processing magnesium for commercial applications.

Furthermore, the discussion addressed the potential for harnessing solar and wind power to drive desalination operations, which could help decrease operational costs. Esmat emphasized Egypt's intention to draw in private and foreign investments in the desalination sector, increase the local production of equipment and components, and introduce advanced water treatment technologies to the nation.