The 28th edition of the Water, Energy, Technology and Environment Exhibition (WETEX) opened on 20 October 2026 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, running for three days with a programme built around water production, desalination, wastewater treatment and water reuse, alongside smart networks, leak detection and resource management (GDNOnline).
Key takeaways
- WETEX 2026, organised by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), opened on 20 October 2026 at the Dubai World Trade Centre for a three-day run (GDNOnline).
- Dewa's Hassyan Seawater Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant has a planned production capacity of 180 million imperial gallons per day and is described in the source as among the world's largest SWRO projects (GDNOnline).
- By 2030, Dewa aims to produce 100 percent of its desalinated water using a combination of clean energy and waste heat (GDNOnline).
- Dewa reports reducing water transmission and distribution losses from 42.5 percent in 1989 to 4.4 percent in 2025 (GDNOnline).
- The World Bank estimates municipal and industrial water reuse could reach 430 million cubic metres per day worldwide by 2040, an eightfold increase (GDNOnline).
What happened
The exhibition, organised by Dewa, brings technology providers, utilities, investors and decision-makers together to address water security under climate and urban-growth pressure (GDNOnline). Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of Dewa, framed the event in terms of integrated action: "Enhancing water security requires an integrated approach that diversifies water sources, improves water-use efficiency, invests in technologies that reduce the energy required for desalination, minimises losses, expands water reuse and strengthens network resilience. WETEX provides a global platform for technology providers, utilities, investors and decision-makers to showcase solutions and connect innovation with investment and implementation" (GDNOnline).
On the supply side, the source points to seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) as consuming less energy than multi-stage flash (MSF) distillation, and uses Dewa's Hassyan SWRO Desalination Plant, with its planned 180 million imperial gallons per day, as the headline example of the shift toward membrane-based desalination (GDNOnline). The source also sets a 2030 target for 100 percent of Dewa's desalinated water to be produced using clean energy and waste heat (GDNOnline).
On the demand and loss-reduction side, the source reports that Dewa's network technologies cut water transmission and distribution losses from 42.5 percent in 1989 to 4.4 percent in 2025, and describes the Hydro Insight system as an AI layer that turns network data into operational actions (GDNOnline). On reuse, the source cites a World Bank projection that municipal and industrial water reuse could reach 430 million cubic metres per day worldwide by 2040, an eightfold increase (GDNOnline). The source also flags a wider World Bank warning that urban water availability could fall by up to two-thirds by 2050 against 2015 levels under current water management policies and projected climate scenarios (GDNOnline).
| Reported figure | Value | Year / target | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hassyan SWRO planned production capacity | 180 MIGD | Project, reported 2026 | GDNOnline |
| Share of desalinated water from clean energy and waste heat (Dewa target) | 100 percent | By 2030 | GDNOnline |
| Dewa water transmission and distribution losses | 42.5 percent (1989) to 4.4 percent (2025) | 1989–2025 | GDNOnline |
| Global municipal and industrial water reuse (World Bank projection) | 430 million m³/day, eightfold rise | By 2040 | GDNOnline |
Specification read
Translating the headline Hassyan figure into buyer units: 180 MIGD is roughly 818,300 m³/day, which places the plant in the same order of magnitude as very large Municipal desalination schemes. The source does not report influent or product-water quality, so BOD, COD, TDS, recovery rate and specific energy consumption in kWh/m³ are not stated here; a buyer scoping an SWRO in this size class typically works to seawater feed with product water targeted at low TDS for potable or industrial use, but those numbers must come from the project's process data sheet rather than this report. The treatment train implied by the event is intake and screening, pretreatment (coagulation, filtration, cartridge), the high-pressure RO block with high-efficiency membranes and energy-recovery devices, then post-treatment and disinfection before distribution; WETEX 2026 bears most directly on the RO membranes, high-efficiency pumps and clean-energy supply that sit inside that train. If your plant is a large seawater or brackish RO site in the range of hundreds of thousands of m³/day, or a municipal network under pressure to cut non-revenue water below 5 percent and to add reuse capacity, this exhibition is where the suppliers of Mbr Membrane Systems and Water Purification equipment, plus the AI leak-detection and smart-meter vendors, are likely to be showing their reference plants. For a structured procurement path, the Industrial Wastewater Management Solutions Providers (2026 Buyer's Guide) and the Rural Sewage Treatment in Qatar: 2026 Engineering & Buyer's Guide sit alongside the same supplier set.
FAQ
What is the headline capacity figure from WETEX 2026?
The source reports Dewa's Hassyan Seawater Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant with a planned production capacity of 180 million imperial gallons per day (about 818,300 m³/day) and describes it as among the world's largest SWRO projects (GDNOnline). Process details such as recovery rate and specific energy use are not given in the source.
What is Dewa's clean-energy target for desalination, and by when?
The source states that by 2030 Dewa aims to produce 100 percent of its desalinated water using a combination of clean energy and waste heat (GDNOnline). The source does not report capex, lead time, or the share of clean energy versus waste heat within that mix.
How has Dewa reduced network water loss, and over what period?
According to the source, Dewa's advanced technologies and systems reduced water transmission and distribution losses from 42.5 percent in 1989 to 4.4 percent in 2025 (GDNOnline). The source attributes the continued improvement to the Hydro Insight AI system but does not give unit cost or payback data.
How large could water reuse become, according to the source?
The source cites a World Bank estimate that municipal and industrial water reuse could increase eightfold worldwide by 2040, reaching 430 million cubic metres per day (GDNOnline). Cost per cubic metre and treatment-train breakdown for that 2040 figure are not given in the source.
