NICOSIA (Reuters) – Cyprus has received 13 mobile desalination units from the United Arab Emirates, delivered free of charge to help the island deal with a severe water shortage just ahead of the water-intensive tourism season.
Cyprus has four large desalination plants with a combined daily water production capacity of about 220,000 cubic metres.
The UAE will supply it with 14 mobile desalination units under a bilateral deal, boosting its daily production capacity by about 15,000 cubic metres.
While the mobile units are a valuable addition in tackling the water crisis, the situation remains challenging, Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou said.
“This shouldn’t make us complacent. People must still use water sparingly,” she said as she thanked the UAE for dispatching the units within a matter of weeks.
Although Cyprus has a widespread reservoir network, it has increasingly relied on desalination in recent decades to offset declining rainfall.
As of Monday, the country’s 18 largest reservoirs were only 21.7% full, according to official data.
(Writing by Michele Kambas; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
Comments