ARTICLE IN PRESS

Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115

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Energy Policy
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/enpol

Application of a multi-criteria analysis for the selection of the most suitable

energy source and water desalination system in Mauritania
Angel Antonio Bayod Rújula a, Nourou Khalidou Dia b,
a
Department of Electrical Engineering, Polytechnic Centre Superior, University of Zaragoza, Spain
b
Centre of Research for Energy Resources and Consumption, University of Zaragoza, C/Maria de Luna 3, 50015 Zaragoza, Spain

a r t i c l e in fo abstract

Article history: Water deficits and their associated shortages are serious problems in many areas of the world. The paper
Received 8 June 2009 presents a multi-criteria analysis for selection of the most suitable system in Mauritania. Six scenarios,
Accepted 24 August 2009 different energy sources, technologies of water desalination processes and water use and five criteria are
Available online 20 September 2009
analyzed. The multi-criteria analysis shows that the optimal solution is different for each scenario; in
Keywords: some cases the photovoltaic-reverse osmosis option is preferable; in others, the best option is reverse-
Desalination osmosis powered by wind energy or concentrating solar parabolic.
Renewable & 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Scenarios

1. Introduction 2. Resources

Water deficits and shortages are serious problems in many
areas of the world, but particularly in the Middle East and North
Africa (MENA), the Mediterranean islands of South Europe, (Essam
Mohamed and Papadakis, 2008) and the isolated communities of
the Mauritanian desert. At small scales, the solar desalination
system is applicable in these areas, which have water source
problems and are too remote to access grid electricity (Kalogirou,
2001). Mauritania is a country deficient in basic infrastructure; a
great part of the population currently does not have access to
basic services like water and electricity due to fossil fuel resource
limitations and lack of hydric resources. The Mauritanian govern-
ment indicated that the water deficit will affect 500,000 persons
in urban sectors and 600,000 in rural sectors. Mauritania is,
however, a country with a high rate of solar radiation, approxi-
mately 2020 kWh/m2 year in the case of Nouakchott (NASA, 2008).
The essential problem of the development process in these
regions is a lack of searching techniques, which increase the
potable water potentialities. National water reserves could be
exploited. However, this water is hot, brackish and not exploitable
without treatment. Desalination technology is the unique alter-
native for obtaining potable water. This work presents a multi-
criteria analysis for the selection of the most suitable system for
six scenarios in Mauritania, applying technical, economic and
environmental criteria of the renewable resource, water desalina-
tion technology and water consumption.
 Corresponding author.
E-mail address: nouron@unizar.es (N.K. Dia).
Energy resources are particularly favorable in Mauritania
(Developpement Energies Renouvelables en Mauritanie, 2004).
Nowadays the majority of electrically energy comes from burning
diesel. In 2003, the oil imported accounted for 16.4% of total
national imports. Clearly, Mauritania is presently energy-dependant
and economically sensitive to variations in the price of petroleum.
The total fuel use during the 1990–2007 period for each supply is
summarized in Table 1.
Renewable energy offers an alternative solution to decrease the
dependence on fossil fuel. Forms of renewable energy available
are solar throughout the territory, the wind energy in the coast
regions for a length of 800 km and hydraulic potential found
particularly in the southern regions (Senegal River length of
1790 km).
2.1. Solar energy
Mauritania has some of the highest levels of solar radiation in
the world, making it an ideal place for producing solar energy. The
gross solar energy input is estimated at 2  109 GW h/year. Solar
irradiation on the horizontal surface varies between 1900 and
2200 kWh/m2 year (Fig. 1) (NASA, 2008). This potential is provided
year-round and for relatively long periods of time. The solar
energy available can be used continuously in an optimal manner
(Bakary, 2008).
For selected sites in Mauritania, monthly series of global
horizontal irradiance and direct normal irradiance were extracted.
These figures are made by application of ARCGIS 9.2 (a geospatial
analysis software package). The data for each city enabled us to

0301-4215/$ - see front matter & 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2009.08.057
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100 A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115

Table 1
Oil imported by Mauritania between 1990 and 2002.

Quantity (T/year) 1990 1995 2000 2001 2002 2007

Fuel oil 57,304 60,022 87,203 81,778 76,867 –

Diesel 162,491 207,336 228,649 258,518 280,267 –
Gasoline 30,334 42,164 26,188 23,315 27,407 –
Lamp oil 2400 960 356 185 74 –
Gas butane 59.1 53.3 101.3 89.2 92.4 –
Total 250,188 310,535 700,513 363,885 384,707 547,775a

a
is the total annual consumption of the petroleum product.

Fig. 1. Global solar irradiation for all regions of Mauritania.

use an extrapolation method (natural neighbor). The natural
neighbor tool can efficiently handle large numbers of input points.
The normal direct irradiation received is between 1600 kWh/
m2 year in southeast regions and more than 2600 kWh/m2 year in
coastal regions of Dakhlet Nouadhibou, (Fig. 2) (NASA, 2008).
2.2. Wind energy
trade, which blows from the northwest all year; the harmattan, a
north-eastern wind that blows in the dry season; and a southern
monsoon that displaces the intertropical face during the wet
season (Bakary, 2008). Wind speeds (at 10 m above ground level)
vary between 3 m/s and more than 9 m/s in the northwest near
the Sahara, (Fig. 3) (Etude strate gique, 2004).

Mauritania is the windiest country in West Africa. Wind 2.3. Potential of hybrid systems
potential is considerable, with a capacity for exploitation
estimated at approximately 7644 kW/m2 year (Bakary, 2008). Hybrid systems as PV–Wind, PV–Diesel, and PV–Diesel–
Wind potential is ensured by three dominant winds: the maritime Battery are used in the rural sector or in peripheral zones of great
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A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115
Fig. 2. Normal direct irradiation for all regions of Mauritania.
cities. It is difficult to quantify the real potential of hybrid systems
because it depends on the availability of resources in the zone
and the type of combinations, generally. (Many installations of
PV–Diesel, PV–Diesel–Battery exists in the interior and PV–Wind
in the coastal cities (due to a higher potential of these sources).
3. The water consumption
The problem of water supply is crucial in Mauritania. It is the
largest deficit in the country’s infrastructure. The drought has
caused accelerated urbanization, and brought the need for major
water infrastructure improvements. It is estimated that 4 out of 5
Mauritanians do not have a faucet in their homes. They are forced
to consume well water. Since the quality of well water leaves
much to be desired, one of the most common alternatives is to
buy it from a retailer or to try one of the public sources of water
(Mohamed Lemine, 2003).
The internal renewable water resource (IRWR) per capita
in Mauritania was 141.000 hm3 in 2001 (Water resource in
Mauritania, 2001). There are three forms of water use in
Mauritania: domestic, agriculture, and industry consumption,
which used 6%, 92% and 2%, respectively, in 1985. Agriculture
occupies 67% of the active population and contributes 1/3 of GIP
(Mohamed Lemine, 2003).
101
4. Water desalination technologies
There is no fresh water in the north of Mauritania. The use
of desalination might be necessary to provide their cities with
fresh water.
The first desalination technologies developed in the world were
thermal distillation, multi-stage flash (MSF), multi-effect distillation
(MED), and vapor compression (VC). In these processes, salt water is
distilled in steam and condensed as pure water. Subsequently, the
membrane processes such as electrodialysis (ED) and reverse osmosis
(RO) were developed (Martinez and Koo-Oshima, 2004).
In Mauritania, two main sources are available for desalination:
the Atlantic Ocean and the brackish groundwater in some basins.
Desalination of sea and brackish water seems to offer a sound
alternative for arid lands bordering seas or salt lakes. The first
experience with seawater desalination in the country is the
Maurelec unit; installed in Nouakchott in 1968, it uses a MSF
process. This unit, with 3000 m3/day of capacity, has operated
since 1974. It was abandoned for technical reasons and cost
problems. The population of many villages, fisherman and women
that reside on the coast between Nouakchott and Nouadhibou
(Imraguens population) have benefited from hundreds of indivi-
dual distillation plants that produce a low amount of desalted
water. These distillation processes have been progressively left
due to persistence of serious technical and maintenance problems
 ARTICLE IN PRESS
102 A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115
Fig. 3. Wind speed at 10 m for all regions of Mauritania.
(Bakary, 2006). The reverse osmosis unit of the Mauritanian Society
of Industries and Mines (SNIM) installed in the city of Zouerat
desalts brackish water to produce 16 m3/h for the diverse needs of
the Guelbs Society. The brackish water treated by active coal and
filtered by cartridges is pumped at high pressure to 66 modules of
reverse osmosis placed in 11 tubes. The modules are plastic
(cellulose acetate) organized to carry out a selective separation
under the influence of a driving force. These modules produce fresh
water and are maintained in good condition by an adapted
regulation. During the past few years, modules were deteriorated
resulting in an exaggerated consumption of these pieces and
elevated cost of fresh water (Mohamed Lemine, 2003). In January
1996, the Canary government (Spain) donated to Mauritania
three seawater desalination plants (Argeuiba 12 m3/day, Teichott
12 m3/day, Iwik 2 m3/day) and one brackish water plant (Ten-Alloul
25 m3/day) with reverse osmosis technology. From July 2006 to July
2008, the desalination plants produced 1100 m3 of potable water.
These plants are powered by diesel and a hybrid system in the case
of Ten-Alloul village (Experiencia del ITC, 2008). This country has
not used MED, CV and ED technologies yet.
5. Scenarios
Mauritania is a very vast country with a surface area of
1,030,000 km2 (75% desert) and a population of 3,000,000
habitants. The population is very dispersed and has many zones
with very low population levels (north regions, northeast and
southeast regions). The climate is constantly hot, dry and dusty.
During the short rainy season (wintering), from June to October,
annual average precipitation varies from 500 to 600 mm in the far
south to 0–100 mm in the northern 2/3rd of the country. In this
study we chose six scenarios (five cities and one village, Fig. 4). In
this figure, the green points represent the six scenarios studied
and the yellow points the capital of all regions of Mauritania.
Other cities and villages, like (Boutilimit, Oualata, Timbedra,
etc.) can be represented by one of these six scenarios; so all zones
in Mauritania are covered. The choice of particular scenarios is
based on a variety of factors, and their selection was conducted
according to existence of:
 water (potable, brackish, sea, river)
 isolation
 other energy sources and desalination technologies
 the size of the plant required.
5.1. Scenario I (SI): city of Nouakchott
The capital Nouakchott is located at the edge of the coast
between latitude 181 and 061 north and longitude 151 and 571
west. The city was created on a zone encampment occupied since
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Fig. 4. Location of the six scenarios studied.
1957. The population is estimated to be 800,000 habitants, and the
annual water supply is 16,476,000 m3 (data published by the
National Society of the Water (SNDE), 2004). The reality is otherwise,
because the annual supply is twice as high as this volume. The law
on water resources of November 1989 determines the following
norms for consumptions estimation: 50 l/h/day for localities super-
ior to 5000 habitants, 40 l/h/day for localities situated between 2000
and 5000 habitants and 20 l/h/day for localities situated between
150–2000 habitants (Mohamed Lemine, 2003).
5.2. Scenario II (SII): city of Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou is located in the northwest of the country, situated on
a white course, between latitude 201 and 561 north and longitude 171
and 021 west. The population is estimated at 100,000 habitants and
the annual water supply is 2,952,000 m3. Nouadhibou is the second
city in the country after the Nouakchott capital, as much for the
importance of its population as for its economic impact, characterized
essentially by iron mineral export and fishing industries.
5.3. Scenario III (SIII): the city of Bir Moghrein
Bir Moghrein is a city in the north of Mauritania, close to the
border with West Sahara, between latitude 251 and 231 north
and longitude 111 and 621 west. This is the most forgotten
region of Mauritania. The population was estimated to be 1411
habitants in 2001, but, at present, this population has augmented
103
(2%/year), due to development of electrical, water and
telecommunication infrastructures. In this region, all test
drilling executed on crystalline rocks found brackish water
at variable depths between 6 and 40 m. (Mohamed Lemine,
2003).
5.4. Scenario IV (SIV): the city of Kae di
The city of Kae di is situated in the southwest, between latitude
161 and 151 north and longitude 131 and 501 west, and is located
approximately 435 km from Mauritania’s capital. The population
is estimated at 60,000 habitants. It is the largest city and
administrative center of the Gorgol region of southern Mauritania.
The annual water supply is 372,000 m3.
5.5. Scenario V (SV): city of Ne ma
Ne ma is a town in southeastern Mauritania, close to the border
with Mali. It is situated between latitude 161 and 371 north and
longitude 71 and 151 west. The water consumption for the
domestic sector is 60,000 m3/year in 2004, and the urban
population is approximately 60,000 habitants.
5.6. Scenario VI (SVI): the Nebaghuiya village
The Nebaghuiya village is located 120 km southeast of
Nouakchott (between latitude 171 and 341 north and longitude
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104 A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115

151 and 021 west). The population was estimated at 3077
habitants in 2002 with a total water demand of 160 m3/day in
2004. The analyses realized in the laboratory of the National
Society Rural Development (SONADER) classify the perforations
and wells as brackish water. This village is located in a desert,
mountainous zone where the depth perforations reach 100 m
(Informes Consumos Agua, 2005).
6. Planning process
planning process. The problem was divided into different levels
to construct a hierarchical tree. The first level defines the goal to
be achieved, which is the selection of the most suitable system
(based on energy resources, desalination technologies and water
consumption). The second level describes six scenarios (five cities
and one village). The third level outlines the main technologies.
These include energy resources, desalination technologies and
modes of domestic (D), industrial (I) and agricultural (A) water
use. Finally, the fourth level determines the list criteria.

The main objective of this section is to choose systems, based
on combinations of energy sources, desalination technologies and
water consumption, for different scenarios by applying five
criteria (potential, economic costs, O&M costs, environment, and
adequacy). Fig. 5 shows a synthesis of relationships in the
6.1. Determination of the criteria
The criteria represent the tools that enable alternatives from a
specific point of view. It must be remembered that the selection of
criteria is of prime importance in the resolution of a given

Fig. 5. Planning process to multi-criteria decision.

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problem, meaning that it is vital to identify a coherent family of Table 3

criteria. This section describes the five criteria selected: Potential, economic, O&M costs and quantity of CO2 emitted by energy sources for
scenario I.

a. Potential: determination of the energy and water potential. Scenario I PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP
b. Economic costs: determination of the cost/kWh and the
Potential 2020 2800 4500 ffi 3200 2248
investment costs of these installations for each scenario,
AC 4.0 5.6 9 6.4 4.5
considering construction and transport costs. Economic cost o 0.5 0.06 o0.1 0.13 0.120
c. Operation and maintenance costs: the maintenance costs for AC 5 8 7.5 3 6.5
energy sources, desalination technologies installations. O&M costs 0.005 0.02 40.02 0.005o Ho 0.02 0.053
AC 9 7 5 ffi7 6
d. Environment: in this criterion, we calculate the amount of kg
kg CO2 emitted/year 85.6 2394 44,775 8000 26.9
CO2/year emitted by energy sources and evaluate other AC 8.7 8.1 1 7 9
impacts, such as the brine residues, acoustic contamination, Adequacy A VA VA LA VA
affects on marine ecosystems, corrosion of some materials, and AC 4 7 9 5 9
concentration and chemical discharges to the marine environ-
AC: associated coefficients, A: adequate, VA: very adequate, LA: little adequate.
ment. These impacts are difficult to quantify.
e. Adequacy: this criterion determines the adaptation of energy
sources and the desalination technology with different char-
acteristics of scenarios (adequate, very adequate or little 7. Identification of the most suitable systems
adequate).
In order to select the most suitable system, appropriate
combinations of energy sources, desalination technologies, type
6.2. Stages of the planning process of water use, various constraints and requirements concerning site
characteristics, technology selection, and operational require-
There are two stages that determine all possible combinations ments were considered.
and assign different coefficients.
The primary stage consists of combining energy resources,
7.1. Scenario I
desalination technologies processes and the use of water, and the
second assigns numerical values depending on importance.
The annual solar irradiations on horizontal surface and
direct normal irradiation are estimated to be 2020 and
6.2.1. Combinations 2248 kWh/m2 year, respectively (NASA, 2008). The potential for
This stage allows determination of possible combinations for wind production of the Mauritanian coast is higher, more than
the water supply, from the different existing energy sources 2800 h/year (Etude strate gique, 2004). The nonexistence of other
associated with water desalination technology and with general conventional sources (nuclear, natural gas, hydroelectric) and the
uses of water. Five options are considered for generation systems lack of utilization of renewable sources on a large scale obligate
1: system PV, 2: wind system, 3: diesel system, 4: hybrid system the high use of diesel fuel, at the rate of 4500 h/year in the great
and 5: CSP system. For each option, it is possible to assign fives power stations in scenario I (Table 3). The hybrid systems
technology types: reverse osmosis (RO), electrodialysis (ED), MSF, presented in this work evaluate only PV–Diesel, which is a
MED and VC. system not utilized in large cities, except locations within 50 km
Each generation system and each desalination technology used of the national electrical grid of Mauritanian Society of Electricity
assigns a mode of water use, domestic, industrial and agricultural. (SOMELEC). We fixed their value at 3200 h/year.
X= {Xijk, i= 1, y, 5, j = 1, y, 5 and k=1, y, 3}. The element {Xijk}, The approximate cost of a solar kit is inferior to 0.50 h in rural
indicates a system of generation (i) associated with desalination zones (Developpement Energies Renouvelables en Mauritanie,
technology (j) and with a mode of water use (k). 2004). The investment costs are very variable and are between 12
and 15 h/Wp for the neighboring country, Mali (Ricard Muñoz
Martinez, 1998). The wind production cost is 0.06 h in Mauritania
6.2.2. Assigned coefficients for projects that surpass 10 MW, according to the results of
Numerical values are assigned to represent subjective judg- strategic study of wind energy in Africa (Etude strate gique, 2004).
ments of the relative importance of each part. The value of 0 The costs of min-grid diesel (Table 3) is inferior to 0.25 h and
denotes a null contribution (nonexistent potential energy source, inferior to 0.10 h for national electrical grid (Developpement
water or desalination technologies process) while 9 represents an Energies Renouvelables en Mauritanie, 2004). For hybrid systems,
absolute importance (good potential of all resources, see Table 2). the cost depends on the size of the installation. In this case (PV–
The values of the ranking system used are the following: {0, 1, Diesel), we suppose that the economic cost for a hybrid system is
2, 3, 4, y, 9}. situated between a solar photovoltaic plant and a diesel plant
(0.25 hohybrid cost o0.50 h). The Institute for Technical
Thermodynamics of German Aerospace Centre has estimated that
Table 2 the concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) generation cost in
Ranking system adopted. the North Africa and particularly in Mauritania is 0.120 h/kWh for
the great coastal cities Nouakchott and Nouadhibou (Fig. 6)
Intensity of Definition
(Concentrating Solar Power, 2003).
importance
Mauritania is situated in the desert (Sahara zone), where the
[8–9] Great potential (resource, desalination technologies, sky is constantly covered with dust. In general, the photovoltaic
water), low costs, null environmental impact maintenance for small units is very limited (cleaning frontal
[5–7] Intermediate potential, low environmental impact face of modules, control, etc.), and this cost is established at
[1–5] Low potential, high costs, great environmental impact
[0–0.5] Option does not exist
0.005 h/kWh (see Table 3). For wind generators (small powers
capacities), the maintenance cost is 0.02 h/kWh and is used for
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Fig. 6. Generation thermal solar costs for all regions of Mauritania.

greasing, changing blades, etc. Diesel generators require much Table 4

more maintenance (from changes of cartridges to oil and gas Weights of energy sources for scenario I.
replenishment) and recruitment personnel; the costs are thus
Energy sources (SI) PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP
higher, estimated at 0.02 h/kWh for Nouakchott (Kellogg and
Nehrir, 1996). The maintenance and operation costs for hybrid Weights 6264 17,781 3037 4707 14,215
systems depends on several factors such as percentage of
installation of plant photovoltaics and diesel system size, but we
suppose that this cost ranges between photovoltaic and diesel 2394 kg/year for wind, 44,715 kg/year for diesel, 8000 kg/year for
costs. In the case of a CSP plant, this cost is estimated to be 3% of hybrid and 26.9 kg/year for CSP plants.
the investment cost. A 100 MW solar power plant with 9 hours of Great thermal networks generally supply the city of Nouak-
storage means a present investment of 400 million h, 1000 jobs chott. The water comes from 36 perforations of different
during the construction and 100 jobs during the 25 years of capacities in the Idini station, located 70 km from the capital.
operation (Concentrating Solar Power, 2003). Using these data and The first perforations were installed in 1957 and produce a daily
employing the annual direct normal irradiation, we found volume from diesel generators that varies between 53,000 and
maintenance and operation costs to be 0.053 h/kWh. 58,000 m3 (Monographie Eau Potable Mauritanie, 2001). The
Generally, sources of renewable energy do not emit great populations that do not have access to the conventional electrical
quantities of CO2 as conventional fossil fuels do. Nevertheless, in grid (peripheral zones, located up to 40 km from the capital) use
the case of solar photovoltaics, CO2 is produced by silicon photovoltaic, wind and hybrid systems for their potable water
technology applied to manufacture cells. Solar and wind power supplies. Table 3 presents the adequacy of the water use given the
are two purely renewable sources. We have considered particu- energy sources.
larly the mass of CO2 emitted (Table 3), because it represents the By multiplying the coefficients of the five criteria for scenario I
larger percentage of all emissions and is the main cause of the and for each energy source, we obtain the following weights,
greenhouse effect. The amounts emitted are 85.6 kg/year for PV, classified in Table 4.
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Analyzing these results, we observe that the wind source has
the highest weight of 17,781, the CSP source occupied the second
position with a weight of 14,215, and, finally, the diesel had the
lowest weight at 3037 (Fig. 7). This city is provided with
electricity by diesel centrally installed in district peripherals
(Arafat) and the hydroelectric central installed in Mali. This low
weight for the diesel source is due to high costs (economic
and O&M) and to effects on the environment (high kg CO2 emitted
per year).
The quality of the raw water and water produced by the
desalination process is fundamental at the time of choosing one
process. The distillation processes consume the same amount
energy independently of water raw salinity; therefore, they are
appropriate for seawater desalination. Pure water needs a specific
process such as ion exchange or post-treatment if the reverse
osmosis process is initially used (Antonio Valero et al., 2001).
Table 5 reviews the types of basic processes in terms of function
of water contributed and the coefficients assigned for each
technology. The cost is between 0.15 and 0.37 h/m3 of brackish
water desalted for reverse osmosis and between 0.16 and
Potential of energy resources for scenario I
20000
18000
16000
14000
12000
Weights
0.30 h for electrodialysis desalination technology. This cost is
augmented for thermal technology due to use of seawater and is
located between 0.73 and 1.07 for MSF, 0.51 and 0.71 for MED
and 0.78 and 1.05 for VC in coastal cities (Table 6, Antonio Valero
et al., 2001).
The small units need little maintenance, but the required plants
must have a considerable capacity (superior to 30,000 m3/day);
therefore it requires at least a group of 20 persons for maintenance
and management. Considering all factors, the average cost
associated with personnel and maintenance of a plant can be
estimated to be between 0.10 and 0.48 h/m3 (Antonio Valero et al.,
2001). The maintenance cost for membrane technology is
estimated between 0.06 and 0.13 h/m3 (Table 6) and between
0.05 and 0.10 h/m3 for thermal desalination technology.
For environmental aspects, we evaluated the effects caused by
desalination technologies, such as brine residues (Table 6),
acoustic contamination, corrosion of some materials, and finally
the impact on marine ecosystems (Jorge Lechuga et al., 2006).
During the computations of total weights, we have considered
two important factors applied to scenario I: the proximity to the
sea and the desalination process applied as a function of the type
of water use (seawater or brackish water, mentioned in Table 5).
Scenario I is located on the Atlantic coast; we attribute to each
position a variable coefficient between 0 and 9, based on reference
to the sea and distance. In this case, we assign 9 to this scenario.
Finally, the product of the different coefficients of the criteria
allows one to obtain the following weights for each desalination
process, classified in Table 7.

10000 The relative global weight generated for the five desalination
technologies shows the highest ranks of RO and MED, with
8000
relative weights of 6075 and 5685, respectively (Fig. 8). However,
6000
MSF and CV have much lower values of relative weights, 1894 and
4000 1944, respectively.
2000 Water demand is rapidly increasing due to increased develop-
0 ment and the high rate of population increase.
PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP The mode of water distribution in city of Nouakchott is done in
Energy resources many manners, including grid distribution, tankers, camions,
Fig. 7. Potential of energy resources for scenario I.
terminals, fountains and carters (the water is transported by
asses) (Informes Consumos Agua, 2005). There are three modes of
water use:
Table 5 Domestic consumption: high consumption in all zones (more
Desalination process applied in function of the type of water use. than 30 l/pers./day).
Industrial consumption: 90% of the industrial sector is located in
DT BW SW BWAC SWAC
two large cities (Nouakchott and Nouadhibou) and consumes 4%
RO YES NO 9 9
ED YES NO 9 0 Table 7
MSF NO YES 0 9 Weights of the seawater desalination technology for scenario I.
MED NO YES 0 9
VC NO YES 0 9 Desalination technologies (SI) RO ED MSF MED CV

BW: brackish water, SW: seawater, BWAC: brackish water associated coefficients, Weights 6075 0 1894 5685 1944
SWAC: seawater associated coefficients.

Table 6
Economic, maintenance and environmental costs of desalination technologies for scenario I.

Technologies Costs Coefficients O&M Coefficients Environment Coefficients

RO 0.15–0.37 (a) 7 0.06–0.13 (b) 5 Fauna and flora 4

0.37–0.78 4 0.06–0.13 5 Fauna and flora 3.75

ED 0.16–0.30 (a0 ) 7 o (0.06–0.13) 6 Fauna and flora 4

MSF 0.73–1.07 1 0.05–0.10 7.8 Spill of the brine, marine ecosystem 3
MED 0.51–0.71 3 0.05–0.10 7.8 Spill of the brine, marine ecosystem 3
VC 0.78–1.05 1 o 0.05–0.10 8 Spill of the brine, marine ecosystem 3

(a) and (a0 ) are brackish water costs.

(b) operation and maintenance costs for RO conventional system with production capacity between 1200 to 18,000 m3/day in Asian countries (Lemei and Van der Zaag,
2006).
 ARTICLE IN PRESS
108 A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115

of the global consumption of the country (Informe Sectorial
Energı́as Renovables, 2004).
Agriculture consumption: The cultivable superficial area is
120 km2 for Nouakchott. These types of grounds are found in
the peripheral zones and are not used for large-scale agriculture,
due to a high salinity of the ground and the advanced of the desert
(Informes Consumos Agua, 2005), Nevertheless, this small
agriculture cover 1% of market demand, like vegetables, rice,
millet, etc. The water produced for a determined use can be high,
medium or low, following the zones. The economic costs are
variable and depend on the source of production, the type of
water use, and the location of the zones. They are considered to be
0.8 h/m3 for domestic use serving the great cities and less than
0.8 h/m3 in isolated zones (Table 8). In the urban sector, the
maintenance costs vary between 0.14 and 0.27 h/m3 (water
product for conventional grid, see Table 8).
Spills of water cause a greater preoccupation, because recovery
systems do not exist. In the urban sector, the greatest worries are
the rejection of contaminated waters by the industrial sector in
the great cities and the influence of the marine ecosystem in the
coastal regions. The following weights classified in Table 9 show
each mode of water use for scenario I. The relative global weight
generated for the mode of water use shows the highest ranks of
domestic water use, with a relative weight of 3645 (see Fig. 9). The
industrial sector has a lower value of relative weights of 882, and
much lower values for the agriculture sector, 432.
7.2. Scenario II
The annual solar and direct normal irradiations are estimated
at 2012 and 2777 kWh/m2 year, respectively (NASA, 2008). In the
Mauritanian coast, the wind potential is abundant, particularly in
the city of Nouadhibou, at 3400 h/year (Etude strate gique, 2004).
Average wind speed reaches a maximum of 9 m/s in May and June.
About 85% of the time, winds blow from northerly directions. The
major part of the city of Nouadhibou is electrified by central diesel
of 75 MW located in Zouerat (a city located 600 km away). This
caused the lower hours of fossil fuels production, 1700 h/year,
approximately (Cadre des De penses, 2003). As in the anterior
paragraph, we fixed the hybrid systems value at 1700 h/year (see
Table 10).
The economic and maintenance costs of energy sources
are similar to Nouakchott’s costs, except the maintenance cost
for CSP, estimated at 0.043 h/kWh. The amounts of CO2 emitted
(see Table 10) are 85.3 kg/year for a PV source, 2907 kg/year for
wind, 12,935 kg/year for diesel, 425 kg/year for hybrid systems
and 33.3 kg/year for CSP.
The following data, classified in Table 11, show each weights
energy source for scenario II.
This situation is similar to scenario I, except that, in this case,
the relative global weights of wind and CSP systems have
increased and achieved values of 27,417 and 17,374, respectively
(Fig. 10). The diesel system has a medium weight, contrary to
scenario I. Scenarios II and I have practically similar characteristics,
as they are located near the sea and are developing the same
desalination process technologies. Therefore the two factors
(localization of the zone and the distance to sea) commented in
scenario I are also applied in scenario II.
The potable water supply of the city of Nouadhibou has
posed serious problems since its creation in 1905 due to urban,
demographic and economic development, as well as due to
the lack of superficial and underground resources. The exploited
water-bearing formation is located 50 km from the coast
(Mohamed Lemine, 2003).
Table 9
Weights to mode of water use for scenario I.
Mode of water use (SI) Domestic Industry Agriculture
Weights 3645 882 432

Seawater desalination technologies for scenarios I and II Mode of water use for scenario I
7000 4000

3500
6000
3000
5000
2500
Weights

4000
Weights

2000
3000
1500
2000
1000
1000
500
0
RO MSF MED CV 0
Desalination technologies Domestic Industries Agrículture
The water use
Fig. 8. Relative global weights of the five desalination technologies for scenarios I
and II. Fig. 9. Relative global weights of the three modes of water use for scenario I.

Table 8
Level of water consumption and costs for scenario1 (specific costs for conventional sources).

Uses Level of water Coefficients Costs Coefficients O&M Coefficients Environment Coefficients
consumed

Domestic High 9 ffi 0.8 9 0.14–0.27 9 Spills waste water 5

Industry High 9 o 0.8 7 o (0.14–0.27) 7 Water contamination reject 2
Agriculture Very low 4 o 0.8 6 o (0.14–0.27) 6 The lands Contamination 3
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A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115 109

Table 10 Table 12
Potential and quantity of CO2 emitted by energy sources for scenario II. Potential, economic, O&M costs and quantity of CO2 emitted by energy sources for
scenario III.
Scenario II PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP
Scenario III PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP
Potential 2012 3400 1300 ffi1700 2777
AC 4.0 6.8 2.6 3.4 5.5 Potential 2059 o1700 o 3000 ffi 2100 2359
kg CO2 emitted/year 85.6 2394 44,775 8000 26.9 AC 4.1 3 5.6 4.2 4.7
AC 8.7 8.1 1 7 9 Economic cost 0.50 40.06 40.25 0.40 0.135
AC 3 7 3 2 5.5
O&M costs b0.005 b0.02 d0.02  0.002
AC 7 5 4 ffi5 3
Table 11 kgCO2 emitted/year 87.3 1368 27,860 5250 28.3
Weights of energy sources for scenario II. AC 8.7 8.4 3 7.8 9
Adequacy A VA VA LA VA
Eenergy sources (SII) PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP AC 9 2 5 7 1

Weights 6264 27,417 5265 2826 17,734

size of the installation. In this zone, photovoltaic plants are small,

and the cost is superior to 0.50 h/kWh. The wind production cost
Potential of energy resources for scenario II is superior to 0.06 h/kWh, and the hybrid system cost, as
30000 mentioned above, is located by hypothesis between photovoltaic
and diesel costs. The transport of combustible cost from
Nouadhibou or Zouerat until Bir Moghrein city is very expensive
25000
due to distance and the complex topography; therefore, the mini-
grid diesel cost is superior to 0.25 h/kWh (Developpement
20000 Energies Renouvelables en Mauritanie, 2004) (Table 12). The
concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) generation cost is
Weights

0.135 h/kWh for Bir Moghrein city (Concentrating Solar Power,

15000
10000
5000
0 problems, etc.), usually requires moving maintenance equipment
PV Wind Diesel Hybrid
Energy resources
Fig. 10. Potential of energy sources for scenario II.
The unique difference between scenarios II and I concerning the
mode of water use is the low water consumption of the agriculture
sector (with a cultivated surface of 17,800 km2 for all region of
Nouadhibou, Informes Consumos Agua, 2005). The product of the
different coefficients of scenario II for agriculture consumption is
540, contrary to scenario I, which was evaluated at 432.
7.3. Scenario III
The annual solar global irradiation in the horizontal surface
and the direct normal irradiation are 2059 and 2359 kWh/m2 year,
respectively (Table 12 and Fig. 1, NASA, 2008). Scenario III is not a
wind region; the wind speed is low, inferior to 5.9 m/s,
approximately 1700 h/year of wind production (study realized
by MC2-Eole to a resolution of 50 km) (Etude strate gique, 2004).
The inaccessibility to the national electrical grid, the isolation of
the zone, and the non-utilization of renewable sources obligate
high use of diesel generation approximately 3000 h/year
(interpolated from the diesel stations in Mauritania, for example
2920 h/year for Matamoulane village located 60 km from the
capital with 27 kW power). The PV/diesel hybrid system operated
for 2100 h/year.
The transport costs of photovoltaic panels, wind generators,
diesel generators and their components to the zone are very
expensive and drive economic costs too high proportionate to the
2003).
The operation and maintenance cost is superior to
0.5 Ctsh/kWh for photovoltaic installations with 3.8 kWp power
(Kellogg and Nehrir, 1996) (Table 12). For small wind turbines
(1–20 kW), with an investment cost of 1700 h/kW, the main-
tenance cost is 2 Cts h/kWh. Generally, in rural areas, maintenance
technicians are not found. A problem (damages, technical
CSP from great capitals. These reasons influence much of the
maintenance and operation costs, which are elevated in rural
areas and in isolated cities like Bir Moghrein. The maintenance
cost for the CSP system is estimated to be 0.002 h/kWh
(calculation effectuated by 100 MW power plant and with an
investment cost of 400 million h).
The amounts of CO2 emitted are 87.3 kg/year for a PV source,
1368 kg/year for the wind system, 27,860 kg/year for the diesel
system, 5250 kg/year for the hybrid system and 28.3 kg/year for
CSP (see Table 12).
The diesel system augmented the reverse osmosis utility with
5 m3/h of capacity (Bakary, 2008). The photovoltaic and the wind
energy are widely used for electrification and water pumping. In
this city, the concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) for water
desalination is not adequate, because the water and electric
demand are very low and this city is very far away from the sea
(more than 1000 km), but the possibility of evacuating energy
by line transport to the city of Zouerat and Morocco exists.
The hybrid systems, with their different combinations (PV–Wind,
PV–Diesel, etc.) are adequate in this region (Table 12).
The following data classified in Table 13, show weights of each
energy source for scenario III. The relative global weight generated
by a PV source presents the highest value compared to other
sources, with a relative weight of 6741 (see Fig. 11). The hybrid
(PV–Diesel) occupied the second position with a relative weight
of 2293. CSP and wind sources have practically the same values
and a much lower value for diesel source with a relative weight
of 1008.
In 2000, the water supply to Bir Moghrein took place by
tankers from a controlled pumping station, located 70 km away.
Actually, this situation has changed. The government, with
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110 A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115

support from a German company (KARCHER), has installed for the For this scenario, we do not have contamination by the industrial
account of Agency of Universal Access to the Controlled Services sector, (contrary to scenario I), to include in the costs, (Table 16).
(APAUS) a desalination unity with 40 T/day of capacity in the city Table 17, show weights of water use for scenario III.
of Bir Moghrein in 2005 (reverse osmosis technology with diesel The relative global weight generated for the mode of water use
source, 5 m3/h of capacity (Bakary, 2008). Scenario III is located shows the highest ranks of domestic water use, with relative
more than 1000 km from the sea, and the water is brackish. weights of 2646 (see Fig. 13), the industry has a null value and
Therefore no option exists for thermal desalination technology lower values for agriculture, 150.
(MSF, MED, VC). The costs for RO and ED are similar to those of
scenario I, but with a slight superiority due to isolation and the 7.4. Scenario IV
displacement of maintenance personal. The environmental impact
is very limited (Table 14).
The city is located within the Chemama Riverine zone along the
Table 15, show weights of each type of desalination process for
north bank of the River Senegal where the river connects with the
scenario III.
Gorgol River. This region is one of the few areas of settled
For this scenario, we have not studied options for desalination
agriculture in the country. Kae di’s economy is based on agriculture,
of seawater because the transportation of water to those areas is
being one of few zones in the country with large arable areas. The
difficult and costly due to distance of the sea (more than
potential agricultural area for the Gorgol region is estimated at
1000 km), low demand and isolation. The weights obtained for
88,300 ha, with a cultivated surface of 53,030 ha. The main cultures
brackish water desalination show that the RO and ED have the
are rice and millet. The water consumption for the domestic sector
highest rank and are uniquely adequate systems for rural areas
is 372,000 m3/year in 2004. This city does not have problems of
and small city or villages (see Fig. 12).
water consumption, but the rate of electrification is very low.
The mode of water use is identical for all scenarios: domestic,
industrial (industrial sectors do not exist for this scenario) and
agriculture consumption (low for small kitchen gardens supplied 7.5. Scenario V
by irrigation and rainwater). In isolated locations, small-scale
agriculture for small kitchen gardens designed by feminine The city of Ne ma is located in the water-bearing region of
cooperatives or individuals exists. Taoudeni, with a surface of 1600 km2 and 100 m of depth in one

Table 15
Weights of brackish water desalination technology for scenario III.
Table 13
Desalination technologies SIII RO ED MSF MED CV
Weights of energy sources for scenario III.

Weights 1134 1752 0 0 0

Energy sources (SIII) PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP

Weights 6741 882 1008 2293 768

Brackish water desalination technologies for scenarios 3 and 6

1600
Potential of energy resources for scenario III 1500
8000
1400
1300
7000
1200
6000 1100
1000
Weights

5000 900
Weights

800
4000 700
600
3000 500
400
2000 300
200
1000 100
0
0 RO ED
PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP Desalination technologies
Energy resources
Fig. 12. Relative global weights of two desalination technology for scenarios III
Fig. 11. Potential of energy resources for scenario III. and VI.

Table 14
Economic, maintenance and environmental costs of desalination technologies for scenario III.

Technologies Costs Coefficients O&M Coefficients Environment Coefficients

RO 0.15–0.37 (a) 7 b (0.06–0.13) 3 Fauna and flora 6

4(0.37–0.78) 4 2 6

ED (0.16–0.30) (a0 ) 6.5 0.06–0.13 5 Fauna and flora 4

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A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115 111

Table 16
Level of water consumption and costs for scenario III (specific costs for conventional source).

Uses Level of water Coefficients Costs Coefficients O&M Coefficients Environment Coefficients
consumed

Domestic High 9 40.8 7 (0.14–0.27) 7 Spills waste water 6

Industry High 0.5  0.5  0.5  1
Agriculture Low 1.5 o 0.8 5 o (0.14–0.27) 5 Less land Contamination 4

*No exist industry.

Table 17 Table 18
Weights to mode of water use for scenario III. Potential, economic, O&M costs and quantity of CO2 emitted by energy sources for
scenario VI.
Mode of water use SIII Domestic Industry Agriculture
Scenario VI PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP
Weights 2646 0 150
Potential 2100 1700 3600 ffi2500 2200
AC 4.2 3.4 7.2 5.0 4.4
Economic cost 0.50 40.06 o0.25 o 0.35 0.125
Mode of water use for scenario III AC 4 7.5 5 2.5 6
3000 O&M costs d0.005 b 0.02 d0.02  b 0.02
AC 7.5 6.5 4.5 ffi5.5 4
2500 kgCO2 emitted/year 89 1453 35,820 6250 26.4
AC 8.7 8.4 2 7.6 9

2000
Weights

Table 19
1500
Weights of energy sources for scenario VI.

1000 Energy sources SVI PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP

Weights 9865 1392 2268 3657 1900

500

0 about the high use of diesel fuel. The village had five salty
Domestic Agriculture
Water use
Fig. 13. Relative global weights of the three modes of water use for scenario III.
layer (Mohamed Lemine, 2003). There is one deeper layer towards
the east and Malı́. There are formations that present two different
levels:
 The old formation that appears in Mauritania reaches widely,
the Adrar, Tagant, Assaba, Hodh el Chargui, and Hodh el Gharbi
regions. The conditions are favorable for the presence of water.
 Recent formations that corresponded to the terminal con-
tinental stoneware, exploited solely in the southeastern region
of the country (Dhar de Nema).
When rains supply these reserves abundantly, they produce
water of high quality, but, in this zone, other perforations exist
with low volume and with high salinity (salinity superior to
established potability norms).
Scenarios IV and V have been included in this study to
represent many points of the country, but, in reality, they do not
have a water problem. In these scenarios the electrical infra-
structures are very low and the solar irradiation is high.
7.6. Scenario VI
The annual solar irradiation in the horizontal surface and the
direct normal irradiation are 2050 and 2200 kWh/m2 year,
respectively (NASA, 2008). As in the preceding scenario (III),
scenario VI is not a wind region. The inaccessibility to the national
electrical grid and low reliability of some renewable sources bring
perforations, but only two of them are in use today, and use diesel
generators: a Perkins model P40 with 38 kW, functioning 10 h/day
(3600 h/year, see Table 18), and a second of 13 kW power that
serves as support.
The Nebaghuiya village is located 120 km from the capital;
therefore, the transport costs do not strongly affect economic
costs. The solar thermal electricity generation cost is 0.125 h/kWh
for Nebaghuiya village (Concentrating Solar Power, 2003), and the
rest is similar to scenario III (see Table 18).
The diesel source needs much maintenance (change of oil and
gasoil cartridges for each 200 h of operation with 8 l of new oil)
and recruitment of two personnel whose monthly salaries are
estimated to 60 and 90 h. The maintenance and operation costs
for the diesel source are elevated (superior to 0.02 h/kWh, see
Table 18) and 0.0545 h/kWh for the CSP system (calculation
effectuated by 100 MW power plant with investment cost of
400 million h).
The amounts of CO2 emitted are 89 kg/year for PV source,
1453 kg/year for the wind source, 35,820 kg/year for the diesel
system, 6250 kg/year for the hybrid system and 26.4 kg/year for
CSP (see Table 18).
The following data classified in Table 19 show weights of each
energy source for scenario VI. The relative global weights
generated by energy sources are presented in Fig. 14. For more
detail, see the analysis effectuated in scenario I.
The water desalination technologies for this scenario are similar
to scenario III because the possibility for thermal desalination
technology as MED, MSF, CV does not exist. Therefore the costs are
practically similar, but with a slight inferiority to scenario III due to
the proximity of the capital (diminution of transport costs,
construction costs, maintenance costs, etc.). The weights obtained
for brackish water desalination show that the RO and ED have the
highest rank (1512 and 1755, respectively, see Table 20).
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112 A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115

Potential of energy resources for scenario VI Table 21

12000 Possible options for coupled energy sources and desalination process (G. Fiorenza
et al, 2003).

10000 Energy sources/ RO ED MSF MED CV

desalination
8000 technologies
Weights

PV 9 9 0 0 7
6000 Wind 9 8 0 0 7
Diesel 9 8 0 0 7
Hybrid 9 9 0 0 7
4000
CSP 9 0 9 9 9

2000
Table 22
0 (a) Weights of systems for scenarios I and II.
PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP
Energy resources Systems/weights Scenario I Scenario II

Fig. 14. Potential of energy resources for scenario VI. PV + RO+ D 1,24835E + 12 1.24835E+ 12
PV + RO+ I 3.02071E + 11 3.02071E+ 11
PV + RO+ A 1.47953E+ 11 1.84941E+ 11
PV + VC +D 3.10702E + 11 3.10702E+ 11
PV + VC +I 75,182,131,584 75,182,131,584
Table 20 PV + VC +A 36,823,901,184 46,029,876,480
Weights of brackish water desalination technology for scenario VI. Wind+ RO+ D 3.54358E+ 12 5.46394E+ 12
Wind+ RO+ I 8.57459E+ 11 1.32214E+ 12
Desalination technologies SVI RO ED MSF MED CV Wind+ RO+ A 4.1998E + 11 8.09473E + 11
Diesel + RO+ D 6.05245E + 11 1.04926E + 12
Weights 1512 1755 0 0 0 Diesel + RO+ I 1.46454E+ 11 2.53896E+ 11
Diesel + RO+ A 71732725200 1.55446E+ 11
Diesel + VC +D 1.50639E + 11 2.6115E + 11
Diesel + VC +I 36,450,851,472 63,191,877,840
Diesel + VC +A 17,853,478,272 38,688,904,800
The mode of water use is identical to scenario III except the Hybrid + RO+ D 9.3806E + 11 5.63195E+ 11
agricultural use. Hybrid + RO+ I 2.26987E+ 11 1.36279E+ 11
Hybrid + RO+ A 1.11177E+ 11 83,436,237,000
Hybrid + VC+ D 2.33473E+ 11 1.40173E + 11
8. Results and discussion Hybrid + VC+ I 56,494,618,992 33,918,375,456
Hybrid + VC+ A 27,670,833,792 20,766,352,320
CSP +RO+ D 2.83291E+ 12 3.46247E+ 12
The results are obtained by the product of total coefficients CSP +RO+ I 6.85495E+ 11 8.37832E+ 11
associated with sources, by total coefficients associated with CSP +RO+ A 3.35753E+ 11 5.12959E+ 11
desalination technologies, and by total coefficients associated CSP +MED + D 2.65105E + 12 3.24019E + 12
CSP +MED + I 6.41488E+ 11 7.84046E + 11
with consumption of the water. During computations we have CSP +MED + A 3.14198E+ 11 4.80028E+ 11
considered a special criterion: the possible coupling of CSP +MSF + D 8.83216E+ 11 1.07949E + 12
energy sources with desalination process, applied to all scenarios CSP +MSF + I 2.13716E+ 11 2.61211E+ 11
(Table 21). These coefficients vary between 0 and 9 and depend on CSP +MSF + A 1.04677E + 11 1.59925E+ 11
Wind+ VC +D 8.81958E+ 11 1.35992E+ 12
their importance and intensity.
Wind+ VC +I 2.13412E+ 11 3.29066E + 11
Therefore, with the data used in the calculation procedure, we Wind+ VC +A 1.04528E + 11 2.01469E + 11
obtain relative global weights classified in two Table 22(a and b),
(b) Weights of systems for scenarios III and VI
which represent the use of seawater and brackish water, Systems/weights Scenario III Scenario VI
respectively. The results of these combinations show a great PV + RO+ D 0.2022E + 11 0.4529E+ 11
domination of pairs (Wind–RO–D), (CSP–RO–D) and (CSP–MED– PV + RO+ A 0.0114E + 11 0.0295E+ 11
D) for scenarios I and II (Fig. 15). Therefore, the most suitable PV + ED+ D 0.3130E + 11 0.5662E+ 11
PV + ED+ A 0.0177E + 11 0.0369E+ 11
system is the wind powered by reverse osmosis for domestic use
Wind+ RO+ D 0.0264E + 11 0.0639E+ 11
(Wind–RO–D) with relative weights of 3.54  1012 and 5.46  1012 Wind+ RO+ A 0.0015E + 11 0.0041E+ 11
for scenarios I and II, respectively. The difference in weights is due Wind+ ED+ D 0.0409E + 11 0.0798E+ 11
to the high wind potential of scenario II; indeed, if we observe the Wind+ ED+ A 0.0023E + 11 0.0052E+ 11
diagram of energy sources for all scenarios (Fig. 16), we note that Diesel + RO+ D 0.0302E + 11 0.1041E+ 11
Diesel + RO+ A 0.0017E + 11 0.0067E+ 11
wind energy has the highest ranks for scenarios I and II, with Diesel + ED+ D 0.0468E + 11 0.1301E+ 11
relative weights of 17,781 and 27,417, respectively. Therefore we Diesel + ED+ A 0.0468E + 11 0.0084E+ 11
conclude that the wind potential constitutes an important source Hybrid + RO+ D 0.0688E + 11 0.1679E+ 11
for these two scenarios and that the second option is the CSP. Hybrid + RO+ A 0.0039E + 11 0.0109E+ 11
Hybrid + ED+D 0.1064E + 11 0.2099E+ 11
Analyzing the results of the most suitable systems, it was found
Hybrid + ED+A 0.0060E + 11 0.0136E+ 11
that RO desalination technology appears to be the most applied
process. This analysis confirms the results illustrated in Fig. 17,
with relative weights of 6075 for RO and a slight superiority to
MED process with weights of 5685. This analysis is valid for
scenarios I and II because they present the same values. The We observed the presence of the wind source in the first plane; in
particular analysis of scenario I (Fig. 15) shows four dominant this scenario, the wind potential is high and achieved relative
pairs: (Wind–RO–D), (CSP–RO–D), (CSP–MED–D) and (PV–RO–D). weights of 17,781. CSP also is a good option, with relative weights
 ARTICLE IN PRESS
A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115 113

PV+RO+D
PV+RO+I

Seawater desalination systems for scenarios I and II PV+RO+A

6E+12 PV+VC+D
PV+VC+I
PV+VC+A
Wind+RO+D
Wind+RO+I
5E+12
Wind+RO+A
Diesel+RO+D
Diesel+RO+I
Diesel+RO+A
Diesel+VC+D
4E+12
Diesel+VC+I
Diesel+VC+A
Hybrid+RO+D
Hybrid+RO+I
Weights

3E+12 Hybrid+RO+A
Hybrid+VC+D
Hybrid+VC+I
Hybrid+VC+A
CSP+ RO +D
2E+12 CSP+ RO+I
CSP+ RO+A
CSP+ MED+D
CSP+ MED+I
CSP+ MED+A
1E+12
CSP+MSF+D
CSP+MSF+I
CSP+MSF+A
Wind+VC+D

0 Wind+VC+I
Scenario I Scenario II Wind+VC+A
Scenarios
Fig. 15. Seawater desalination systems for scenarios I and II.

of 14,215. For water desalination, RO is the most dominant
desalination process. However, the pairs (Hybrid–VC–A) and
(diesel–VC–A) have low likelihood of viability due to low
potential diesel and low water consumption in the agriculture
sector. Finally, it has been demonstrated that, in finding the most
suitable systems for all scenarios, it is always important to
consider water use in the domestic sector. As in the preceding
analysis, the most suitable system for scenario II is reverse
osmosis powered by wind energy (Wind–RO–D). Wind energy and
CSP have been dominant generation sources, with relative weights
of 27,417 and 17,374, respectively. However, other important
combinations exist: (CSP–RO–D), (CSP–MED–D) and (Wind–VC–
D). Scenarios III and VI are situated more than 1000 and 120 km
from the sea, respectively. Therefore, the possibility of using
seawater does not exist. In these scenarios, the studies have
shown that the water is brackish and the average value of
conductivity of the feed water is around 2200 mS/cm. The most
suitable systems are pairs (PV–ED–D), (PV–RO–D) and (Hybrid–
ED–D) for scenario III and VI (Fig. 18). The results show that (PV–
ED–D) has the highest ranks, with a relative weight of 0.56  1011
for scenario VI, almost double the weights of scenario III. We
deduce that the RO and ED desalination processes offer a viable
option for desalination of brackish water for these scenarios and
that the PV appears as the dominant source.
9. Conclusions
The main goal of this paper was to select the most suitable
system for desalination technologies powered by energy
sources for different scenarios. Evaluations of each scenario were
carried out taking into account several criteria and reaching
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114 A.A. Bayod Rújula, N.K. Dia / Energy Policy 38 (2010) 99–115

PV Wind Diesel Hybrid CSP PV+RO+D Diesel+RO+D

Energy resources for four scenarios of Mauritania PV+RO+A Diesel+RO+A
30
PV+ED+D Diesel+ED+D
PV+ED+A Diesel+ED+A
25
Wind+RO+D Hybrid+RO+D
Wind+RO+A Hybrid+RO+A
Weights (10^3)

20
Wind+ED+D Hybrid+ED+D
Wind+ED+A Hybrid+ED+A
15
Brackish water desalination systems for scenarios III and VI
10 0.6

5
0.5
0
Scenario I Scenario II Scenario III Scenario VI
Scenarios
0.4
Fig. 16. Energy resources for scenarios I, II, III and VI.

Weights (10^11)
0.3

Seawater desalination technologies for scenarios I and II

7
0.2

6
RO
ED 0.1
5
MSF
Weights (10^3)

MED
4
VC 0
Scenario III Scenario VI
3 Scenarios

Fig. 18. Brackish water desalination systems for scenarios III and VI.
2

1
0 PHN, realizado por el Centro de Investigación de Recursos y Consumos
Scenario1 Scenario2
Scenarios
Fig. 17. Seawater desalination technologies for scenarios I and II.
different solutions or alternatives (energy sources +desalination
and technology+mode of water use). This study can conclude
that:
 Wind and CSP are the best strategies for scenarios I and II
(coastal cities) and PV is the more important source in other
scenarios (isolated regions).
 RO for the desalination of brackish water and seawater is
becoming more important for all scenarios.
 RO and the ED desalination process powered by PV are
appropriate solutions for scenarios III and VI (all scenarios
with low demand and with brackish water).
 RO powered by wind or CSP is the most suitable system for
great cities located on the coast (scenarios I and II).
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