Companies, today, have a role that goes far beyond their own activity, as well as the mission and vision for which they have been conceived. Businesses and markets are responsible for acquiring a commitment to the environment - a deep commitment to the future. Sustainability must be, in short, a maxim in all companies, and their strategy and purpose must respond to promoting the changes necessary to create sustainable prosperity.
And talking about sustainability and the future necessarily implies looking at water. One of the basic resources, most necessary for life and which, however, is most scarce and generates more inequalities. Today, some two billion people (more than 26% of the world's population) do not have access to safe drinking water and more than 4 billion suffer from severe water shortages in the areas where they live. Regions such as North Africa and the Middle East are the most affected. This fact does not go unnoticed by the United Nations, which in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, to end extreme poverty and protect the planet, cites 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), being number six to ensure clean water and sanitation for all.
Renewables, combined with efficient management of water resources, provide the formula for real progress towards sustainable development
Aware of the current reality, the water sector must focus all its efforts on promoting the innovative spirit to implement real solutions for water conservation, treatment or reuse, and the improvement of supply infrastructures, as well as more efficient agricultural practices. Water, therefore, must be placed at the centre of the action plan. But not only water. Energy, especially renewables, also plays a key role because, combined with efficient management of water resources (energy+water), they provide the formula for real progress towards truely sustainable development. The water-energy nexus is nothing more than the fact that every power plant requires water for its operation, and every water plant requires energy for its production.
At Cox, we maintain a deep commitment to the environment, and this commitment involves desalination as a response to alleviate the deficiency of water resources that plagues much of the planet. Along with managing water scarcity (only 0.025% of the water on earth is available freshwater), it is about converting salt water from seas and oceans into fresh water, either for consumption or for use. Cox is a global leader in desalination and meets this critical challenge by managing 10% of the world's installed capacity. With more than 55 years of experience in the management of water assets and upstream infrastructure, the company has been recognized in the main rankings of the sector worldwide and has received more than 20 awards from different leading organizations in the industry.
In addition, Cox goes a step further and applies the "Energy follows Water" strategy, which addresses the water-energy nexus mentioned above, or, in other words, understanding sustainability from a global perspective, even considering the challenge of optimizing the cost of producing desalinated water. And it does so by seeking sustainable and efficient solutions, such as the application of renewable energy plants that make it possible for desalination plants to be self-sufficient. A real example, on a commercial scale, is the Taweelah desalination plant, developed by Cox in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates), the largest in the world by reverse osmosis (900,000 m3/day), which works, in large part, thanks to the energy provided by a photovoltaic solar plant of more than 70 MWp, which allows it to reduce 2.5 M tons of CO2 per year and provide drinking water of the highest quality below USD 0.50/m3. These figures make it the best and largest plant of the year according to Global Water Intelligence.
The key is to maintain an inclusive approach and to put all the resources at our disposal at the service of the common good. Water, accessible to all and of good quality, must be the maximum. To achieve this, let's bring renewable energy, experience, talent and technology.