Qatar's next desalination plant, Facility E at Ras Abu Fontas, is due to reach its full water capacity of 110 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD) on 1 August 2028. That equals about 20% of Qatar's 538 MIGD of potable desalination capacity in 2024. KAHRAMAA, the national water and electricity utility, expects capacity to reach 648 MIGD once the plant is commissioned.
Financed, with dates fixed
KAHRAMAA signed the strategic agreement on 11 May 2025, valuing the power and water facility at QAR 13.5 billion. A co-financing package of about USD 2,971 million followed on 15 January 2026, including up to USD 990 million from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation. The plant pairs 2,400 MW of gas-fired power with reverse-osmosis desalination. First power is due on 25 April 2028 and full operations on 1 June 2029.
Built ahead of demand
Qatar is not short of drinking water. Demand was 420 MIGD in 2024, and KAHRAMAA's review of 2025 put average daily demand at about 400 MIGD against maximum production capacity of 540 MIGD, a 35% reserve surplus. Water customers rose from 363,338 in 2019 to 459,600 in 2024, while system production stayed between 666 and 691 million cubic metres a year.
One buyer behind the plant
KAHRAMAA will buy the plant's water and power under a 25-year agreement, the same single-buyer model that runs Qatar's existing plants. Nebras Energy, which states it supplies 73% of Qatar's water, is among the sponsors with QatarEnergy and Japanese and Korean partners. The choice of reverse osmosis follows the shift away from thermal desalination set out in Qatar's 2025 climate pledge.
The full profile covers what this article does not: how far Qatar's aquifers are drawn beyond their safe yield, who regulates and prices water under the 2025 water law, what tariffs and wastewater fees apply, and which wastewater and storage projects still await commissioning.
The full report, Qatar Country Intelligence Profile, is available for USD 99 at https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/reports/qatar-country-intelligence-profile. For a free overview, see https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/countries/qatar.