Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea tourism destination has entered a new phase with the start of commercial operations of what its developers describe as the world’s largest integrated off-grid utilities system powered entirely by renewable energy.
Red Sea Global and ACWA Power announced the Project Commercial Operation Date for the utilities infrastructure supporting The Red Sea destination, marking a major milestone in the development of the multibillion-dollar tourism project.
A Fully Integrated Utilities Network
The milestone followed the signing of a Commercial Operation Certificate by Marafiq Red Sea for Energy Co., the project company established by ACWA Power in partnership with SPIC Huanghe Hydropower and Saudi Tabreed, and the Red Sea Utilities Company, a subsidiary of Red Sea Global.
The agreement formally launches a 25-year concession and begins commercial operations of an integrated utilities network operating independently of Saudi Arabia’s national electricity grid. The system currently supplies hotels at The Red Sea destination, Red Sea International Airport, a logistics hub, electric vehicles, a staff village and other operational and community facilities.
Red Sea Destination Renewable Energy at Its Core
The infrastructure brings together five key services — renewable energy, potable water, wastewater treatment, district cooling and waste management — within a single integrated system. At its heart is a 340-megawatt AC solar photovoltaic plant, supported by a 1,227-megawatt-hour battery energy storage system.
Developers say the facility is the world’s largest off-grid battery storage system, enabling the destination to rely on renewable electricity even after sunset. The system can generate up to 760,000 megawatt-hours of clean electricity annually, potentially avoiding an estimated 600,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year.
Water and Wastewater Solutions
The project also incorporates three seawater reverse-osmosis desalination plants, a waste management center and a sewage treatment facility capable of processing 16,000 cubic meters of wastewater per day.
Treated wastewater will be reused to support the surrounding ecosystem, including the creation of new wetlands, while also providing irrigation for Red Sea Global’s landscape nursery and the Shura Links golf course. A district cooling network further supports the destination’s operations.
A New Model for Sustainable Tourism
The commercial launch represents a significant step in Saudi Arabia’s drive to develop large-scale tourism destinations around renewable energy and infrastructure capable of operating independently of the national grid.
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