But that’s precisely what lies in store in a few years as the final shovel of dirt is removed to complete the new Dubai Canal, extending the Dubai Creek from Al Shindagha all the way to Jumeirah, morphing the area into a new man-made island surrounded by water.

The Dh2 billion canal project was launched on Wednesday by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, an initiative that is expected to boost the Dubai bid for World Expo 2012.

The three-kilometre long canal will start from Business Bay, cutting under Shaikh Zayed Road, Al Wasl Road and Jumeirah Beach Road before it merges with the Gulf waters along Dubai’s shoreline.

Being the heart of Dubai and one of the oldest parts of the city, the area is a mix of commercial hubs and residential neighbourhoods, which unlike other parts of the city, haven’t seen much change for years.

Man-made islands are not new to Dubai and neither are mega projects unheard of in the city. Known for its biggest, largest and tallest projects that have helped the city to stay ahead of other metropolis in the region, residents feel this ambitious project will further add to the charm of the city that continues to reinvent itself. Good reason for longtime inhabitants to be excited.

Emarati media professional Fatima Arbabi lives in a part of Jumeirah which will definitely benefit from the new development. “It’s a brilliant project and I congratulate all the people who are part of it for coming up with such a wonderful idea. Dubai is known for its brilliance in infrastructure, one can appreciate this more when we go to other parts of the world. I’m proud that I’m part of such a blessed city,” said Fatima, who lives in Jumeirah, just a stone’s throw away from the canal site.

Once the canal is ready, Fatima’s house will be a waterfront property, which she feels will bring positive lifestyle changes. “I’m glad that I will be an inhabitant of an island with an exotic waterfront facing my home, can’t ask for anything more.”

Another Emirati, Baqer Abdul Wahed, who lives in Al Wasl area just a few blocks away from where the canal will flow, is confident the canal will inject new life into the neighbourhood.

“This project will be good for Dubai in general and for the residents of Jumeirah and neighbouring areas in particular. Living standards will improve and the area will with bustle with new life and activities. Dubai believes in continuously reinventing itself and offering its people new experiences, I’m sure this project will prove to be another masterstroke,” said Baqer Abdul Wahed, an Emirati who lives in Al Wasl area, just a few blocks away from where the canal will flow.

Highlighting the demand, supply and investment trends in the sector, the report noted that water treatment plants saw highest investment at $3.4 billion. In 2010 many projects were undertaken and finished. The construction of Sabiya distillation plants projects Stage I & Stage II, Shuaiba north distillation plants and Shuwaikh Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant took place.

The construction of Az-Zour North Distillation Plant Project is a huge and much awaited one in Kuwait. It aimed to supply and erect 15 multi stages flash distillation units each of 17 MIGPD capacity with a recarbonation plant, in addition to one Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant having 25 MIGPD capacity, that is having total capacity of 280 MIGPD for the plant.
Kuwait recorded the highest water consumption per capita per day with the value of 500 liters. In terms of its water withdrawal, Kuwait seems to be low at 374 m3 per year per capita, but the availability of renewable water resources stands at 7 m3 per year per capita, which is also very low compared to its GCC peers.

Potable water is mainly consumed by municipalities as potable water finds its use among residential places. Potable water consumption in 2011 stood at 128,236 MIG (million imperial gallons). Municipalities are mainly urban cities and the urban population in Kuwait is increasing rapidly. With increasing population and changing usage trends, the consumption of potable water is estimated to be 142,230 MIG in 2015. This value highlights the heat of demand for fresh water in near future.

Agriculture is also a major sector that withdraws substantial amount of water. Sulaibha farms are government owned farms, which are supplied with brackish water. Brackish water is highly saline, which is not suitable for municipal consumption. Brackish water consumed in 2011 stands at 19,265 MIG. Though the arable land in hectares has decreased from 12 to 11 from 2002 to 2008, the crop produce has been exhibiting increasing trend. The crop production index, which is produced by keeping cultivated land area constant, has shown an increasing trend between 2008 and 2011. These all indicate the possibilities for an increase in withdrawal of water by agriculture sector.

On supply side, there are very little internal renewable water resources.

The annual precipitation is very meager when compared to the prevailing demand. Desalination and sewage treatment plants are the alternative sources of water. Total desalination capacity as of 2010 is around 423.1 MIGD (million imperial gallons per day). Sewage treatment plants are taken care by Ministry of Public Works. Sulaibha facility is the only plant producing RO treated wastewater as of 2011.

The Ministry of Electricity & Water owns and operates all existing power and water production facilities, transmission networks and distribution systems in Kuwait and sells electricity and water. Water tariffs are categorized based on type of consumer. It is just 0.02 Kuwait dinar (KD) per 1,000 gallons for Sulaibha farms and it is 0.85 KD for state facilities and companies.

The report estimates that investments worth $145.7 billion will be needed for power generation from 2013.
Of which, investments worth $63.1 billion will be in the GCC, $21.4 billion in Iran and approximately $53 billion in the combined other countries of the region.
Global demand for renewable energy continued to rise during 2011 and 2012, supplying an estimated 19 percent of global final energy consumption in 2011 (the latest year for which data are available), with a little less than half from traditional biomass.
Useful heat energy from modern renewable sources accounted for an estimated 4.1 percent of total final energy use; hydropower made up about 3.7 percent; and an estimated 1.9 percent was provided by power from wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass, and by biofuels.
Total renewable power capacity worldwide exceeded 1,470 GW in 2012, up about 8.5 percent from 2011. Hydropower rose 3 percent to an estimated 990 GW, while other renewables grew 21.5 percent to exceed 480 GW. Globally, wind power accounted for about
39 percent of renewable power capacity added in 2012, followed by hydropower and solar PV, each accounting for approximately 26 percent.
By the end of 2012, global bio-power capacity was approaching 83 GW, up 12 percent over 2011, with notable increases in some of the BRICS countries.37 Around 350 TWh of electricity was generated worldwide in 2012, a 5 percent increase over the previous year.
Averaging national bio-power generation outputs over
the period 2010-12, the United States had a substantial lead, with Germany second, followed closely by Brazil and China, both of which are gaining ground rapidly.
The main types of commercial bio-power systems are medium- to large-scale direct-fired (similar to most coal- and gas-fired power plants), co-fired, gasifiers, and smaller-scale, modular systems. Together, they produce around 1.4 percent of the world’s electricity generation (compared with coal at 41 percent).
Almost 90 percent of biopower is generated with solid biomass fuels.
Landfill gas, biogas, synthesis gas (also known as syngas), and liquid biofuels are also commonly used for bio-power generation and make up the remaining 10 percent.
With the regional renewable energy sector also continuing to accelerate, governments and experts will gather to debate industry developments, strategy and innovation at the second edition of the Power + Water Leaders Forum in Abu Dhabi, to be held on Sept. 23 at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC).
The dedicated conference runs alongside the Power + Water Middle East exhibition, which takes place from 23-25 September, and will provide an ideal platform for experts to discuss sustainable best practices and innovative solutions across two of the region’s bourgeoning sectors.
A notable line-up of speakers will feature at the one-day forum, including Engineer Khaldon Khashman, Secretary General, Arab Countries Water Utilities Association (ACWUA), and Robin Mills, Head of Consulting at Manaar Energy Consulting.
Experts from the Saudi Electricity Company, Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA), Oman Authority for Electricity Regulation and Regulatory Supervision Bureau will be among the first group of panelists, in the morning of the one-day conference to discuss best practice to improve efficiency in power and water programs.
They will be joined later by Dr Michael Kraemer, Senior Associate at Taylor Wessing, Board Member and Legal Counsel for the Emirates Solar Industry Association, who will deliver a presentation about renewable energy, underlining clear policies and standards to drive investments into solar power projects.

Also speaking will be Dr Said Al Sheikh, Senior Vice President and Group chief economist at the National Commercial Bank, who will spotlight Saudi Arabia’s role as a leader and pioneer in regional renewable energy projects, highlighting new opportunities for the private sector.
Commenting on the rise of MENA renewable energy sector, Anita Mathews, Director of Informa Energy Group, organizers of Power + Water Middle East, said: “The development of the region’s renewable energy sector has seen a sharp interest from investors with regional investments set at $2.9 billion in 2012.”
“One of the key themes of the Power + Water Leaders Forum is renewable energy, and the growth of the sector in the MENA region is likely to continue over the next two decades, with over 100 projects currently under development.”
Held in strategic partnership with the Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (ADWEA), Power + Water Middle East brings together developers, manufacturers, buyers and service providers from a range of sectors in power and water to meet, discuss and invest in the current products and technologies in the related industries.
The exhibition has so far attracted more than 100 exhibitors from 25 countries wishing to network and offer solutions to regional power generation, water and nuclear energy industries.
Power + Water Middle East is run in partnership with Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (ADWEA) and is supported by the Society of Engineers – UAE and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), who will be organizing a government supported national pavilion at the event.

He said total water consumption in the Kingdom crossed eight million cubic meters for the first time.
“This is equal to nearly 800,000 10-ton water tank trucks,” he said while emphasizing the need to rationalize consumption of water.
Al-Hussayen said about 60 percent of the Kingdom’s water supply comes from desalination plants on its Red Sea and Arabian Gulf coasts while the rest comes from underground water wells.
“All regions have reported record consumption of water,” the minister said.
Jeddah’s consumption is more than 1.2 million cubic meters per day, which translates to per capita use of more than 300 liters per day.
Al-Hussayen said his ministry has launched a nationwide campaign to reduce water consumption by 30 percent through free distribution of devices that would help reduce consumption.
He also stressed the importance of preserving the country’s underground water resources.
Saudi Arabia has been producing desalinated water since 1927, with output jumping from 300,000 cubic meters per day to more than five million cubic meters.
The Kingdom is the world leader in this field, producing almost 20 percent of global production.

Scarce fresh water supply is the biggest challenge for Gulf Arab desert countries, forcing them to build energy-intensive seawater desalination plants to meet rising demand.

Saudi Arabia is building the world’s largest desalination plant in Ras al-Khair on the Gulf coast, but the GCC is increasingly concerned that the waters of the Gulf may become undrinkable if there are any leaks from energy installations into the water lying between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran.

“The water link is to build a line from the Arabian Sea or Gulf of Oman to Kuwait passing through the GCC countries,” GCC assistant economic secretary Abdullah J. al-Shibli said.

“With the Iranian nuclear plant in Bushehr, if something goes wrong the water in the Gulf will be polluted.”

Arab Gulf countries sought reassurances from Iran at a U.N. nuclear agency meeting last month over the safety of Bushehr, built on the earthquake-prone coast of Iran.

The Gulf is also home to dozens of offshore oil rigs and loading facilities which could pose a threat to drinkable water supplies in the event of a large leak like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.

“This is a vital and strategic project to provide water under all circumstances… for the water security, the idea is to build desalination plants in all the countries, to produce the water,” Shibli said.

The project, which Shibli said may cost around $7 billion, will include storage facilities to stock up on potable water.