Bridging the 6.5 Trillion Water Infrastructure Gap A Playbook 2025

CASE STUDY 1 Acciona – Casablanca Green Desalination Plant, Morocco A large-scale example of renewable-powered desalination is underway in Morocco, where Acciona, in partnership with Green of Africa and AfriquiaGaz, is developing the €600 million Casablanca Green Desalination Plant. The facility is powered entirely by renewable wind energy through a long- term power purchase agreement (PPA), with half of the output from the 360 megawatt (MW) Bir Anzarane wind farm dedicated to the plant. Designed to produce 300 million cubic meters (m3) of water annually, it will supply safe drinking water to 7.5 million people and irrigation for agriculture, while avoiding the carbon emissions of conventional desalination. Economies of scale allow water production at costs as low as $0.40/m³. Similarly, in most countries, sanitation and wastewater infrastructure remain underdeveloped or entirely absent. Over 40% of the global population, around 3.4 billion people, lack access to basic sanitation services and 1.7 billion people still do not have basic hygiene services at home.8 Access to sanitation is very low across Africa and Asia, with only 27% and 39% of the population having safe access, respectively. This is starkly lower than the 86% and 81% observed in Europe and North America, respectively. Percentage of total population connected to sewerage FIGURE 6 0%20%40%60%80%100% Oceania Europe North America Latin America Middle East Asia Africa89% 86% 81% 64% 46% 39% 27% Source: Global Water IntelligenceProvide global access to basic wastewater and sanitation Bridging the €6.5 Trillion Water Infrastructure Gap: A Playbook 15