Saudi Arabia's strategic water storage stood at 21.8 million m³ in the ministry's June 2026 statement. That is about 1.9 days of the 11.4 million m³ the Kingdom distributes each day. The official goal for 2030 is seven days.
A coastal supply for an inland population
Desalinated water made up half of all distributed water in 2023, and it is produced on the Gulf and Red Sea coasts. Moving it inland takes long pipelines. The Jubail–Buraydah line will carry 650,000 m³ a day over 587 km, with operation expected in 2029. The 859 km Riyadh–Qassim line still had no reported financial close in July 2026, seven months after Vision Invest was named preferred bidder.
The size of the gap
Seven days at today's distribution means about 80 million m³ of storage, roughly 58 million m³ more than reported. The two strategic reservoirs on Sharakat's portfolio, in the Eastern Province (3.13 million m³) and Al-Ahsa (1.389 million m³), add about 4.5 million m³ between them.
Official figures do not agree on the starting point. The Deputy Minister put storage at more than 25 million m³ in November 2024, up from 13 million m³ in 2016, while the Minister cited growth of "more than 125%" in June 2026.
Why the buffer matters more now
Non-renewable groundwater use has fallen from about 21 billion m³ in 2016 to about 11 billion m³ in 2025, on the Minister's figures, so cities lean harder on coastal plants and pipelines. Meanwhile Saudi water awards fell to USD 3.14 billion in the first half of 2026, from USD 7.58 billion a year earlier.
What the full report answers
Which official capacity series should buyers rely on? How do losses of 35% at the National Water Company compare with new storage and supply? Which reservoir, transmission and sewage concessions are next, and what would change the outlook to 2030?
The full report, Saudi Arabia Water Intelligence Report, is available for USD 999 at https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/reports/saudi-arabia-water-intelligence-report. For a free overview, see https://ourfuturewaterintelligence.com/countries/saudi-arabia.