Saudi Arabia plans to establish a 1,000 km-long canal linking the Arabian Gulf with the Arabian Sea, passing by the Kingdom to facilitate transport of oil, avoiding the Strait of Hormuz
According to Al-Muhandis magazine, published by the Saudi Council of Engineers, “it is the largest artificial canal project of the century and the Kingdom’s second renaissance”.
An engineer Esmat Al-Hakeem said that the Saudi Electricity Company is currently studying the project, which aims at not only transporting oil but also generating electricity using nuclear power.
The vital project was first proposed seven years ago. In the first phase it will be used to produce electricity. Later it will be transformed into the Kingdom’s second renaissance.
The new canal will start from the Arabian Sea and will pass through Omani and Yemeni borders before reaching Rub Al-Khali or the Empty Quarter in the Kingdom, the second largest desert in the world covering a total area of 600,000 sq km.
A number of canals will be constructed inside the Kingdom to be linked with the big canal, Al-Hakeem said, adding that a nuclear power plant would be set up on every canal to produce electricity. The plants will be established in the Empty Quarter away from residential cities.
“These plants will generate not less than 50 GW of electricity in addition to desalinated water which will be supplied to residential districts and agricultural farms in the region.
Modern cities will be constructed near the branches of these canals to accommodate workers engaged in implementing new projects including power generation plants, industries, agricultural fields, animal farms and irrigation facilities in the Empty Quarter.
Tourist centers would also be developed on the canals for winter recreation when temperatures fall in Europe, USA and other countries, the study said.
Huge agricultural projects will be established in green houses to produce vegetables and different types of flowers. Fish farming and poultry and dairy farms are other projects planned.
“The move aims at transforming the Empty Quarter, which is now an abandoned region, into a food basket of Saudi Arabia and the main power supply centre,” said Al-Hakeem.
According to the study, 10 nuclear power stations will be constructed along the new canals with a total capacity of 50 GW, which is the Kingdom’s present electricity requirement. This will enable the Kingdom to avoid its dependence on traditional power stations powered by oil.
Plans are also underway to establish solar power fields in the Empty Quarter to produce not less than 50 GW of electricity, he explained. The capacity of solar plants would be increased gradually to reduce dependence on nuclear plants, he added.
Referring to industry, the study said plans are being made to establish huge plants for manufacturing heavy and light vehicles, intermediate and high-speed ships, trucks and solar panels.
Referring to transportation, the study has proposed establishment of two airports for transportation of passengers and goods. Communication facilities by land would also be constructed to link the projects in the Empty Quarter with main Saudi cities. A railway line will also be constructed.
