Bahrain's Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) has set a target of 23% water loss by 2032, under an updated plan that starts in 2026 and reassesses an earlier 15% target. The plan was reported on 7 March 2026. EWA's Statistical Books do not state the current loss rate the target is measured against.
What the books do show
In 2024 EWA produced an average of 168.89 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD) and sent 164.68 MIGD into distribution, a difference of 4.21 MIGD, or 2.5% of production. That is not a loss rate. It excludes leakage in the 3,007 km of mains and 2,969 km of service pipes that supply customers, and any losses at meters.
A network that is renewing
In 2024, 23.4% of mains were classed as aged, down from 25.1% in 2023. That is about 704 km, down from about 737 km, while the mains supplying customers grew by 72 km. Water quality has held: contaminated distribution samples were 0% in every year from 2020 to 2024, after peaking at 1.16% in 2013.
Meters before targets
The plan's first step is an updated register of flow meters, with staged replacement from 2026. Every lost cubic metre has already been desalinated. EWA's 2024 tariff table put its cost at 750 fils per cubic metre for the first citizen band, which pays 25 fils.
Who supplies Bahrain's water, which desalination plants are being procured and on what timetable, and how a draft law to dissolve EWA would change tariff setting are covered in the report. The full report, Water Systems Overview: Electricity and Water Authority, is available for USD 499. For a free overview, read the Electricity and Water Authority Utility Snapshot.