Abstract
Co-optimization of renewable power and water desalination systems for Neom, a futuristic seaside city in an arid region, results in more pronounced cost investment savings for a high share of renewable sources.
The interdependence between the water and power sectors is a growing concern as the need for desalination increases globally. Therefore, co-optimizing interdependent systems is necessary to understand the impact of one sector on another. We propose a framework to identify the optimal investment mix for a co-optimized water-power system and apply it to Neom, Saudi Arabia. Our results show that investment strategies that consider the co-optimization of both systems result in total cost savings for the power sector compared to independent approaches. Analysis results suggest that systems with higher shares of non-dispatchable renewables experience the most significant cost reductions.