The Institute of Domotics and Energy Efficiency of the University of Malaga (IDEE) is developing Agua+S, a solution to tackle drought in the subtropical region of La Axarquía. Agua+S is a circular economy project that proposes the application of a sustainable desalination of seawater cycle from three coordinated infrastructures.
It requires a desalination plant placed near the sea, a network of pumping stations to drive the desalinated water through the course of a river, and, finally, a floating photovoltaic park installed on the water of a reservoir, which would supply the energy necessary to develop the entire process.
This is the first time that a proposal bets on using these three facilities together. Trops has promoted Agua+S since its inception.
The project was presented last March by the CEO of Trops, Enrique Colilles, at the ‘Innovative solutions to water scarcity’ conference organized by the Association of Entrepreneurs of Southern Spain, CESUR. "It would seem that the drought that is affecting the country is here to stay, so it is necessary that we adapt to these new climatic conditions,” Colilles stressed. Water, just like electricity, must be brought from where it is produced, he added.
"The water generated by the desalination plant will be channeled and poured into the Viñuela dam to feed the swamp, but the great novelty is that the desalination plant will be equipped with photovoltaic panels that will produce the energy necessary to treat the water, making the dam self-sufficient or even creating an energy surplus that can be poured into the network," he stated.