UAE to tow icebergs from Antarctica to meet water demand

Abu Dhabi, July 2: The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) National Security Advisor Bureau Limited has declared the launch of the official UAE-Iceberg Project website, coinciding with the 'Year of Zayed' 2018, to highlight its ambitious project to tow icebergs from Antarctica to the coasts of the desert nation to set them up as the new sources of water, Khaleej Times reported on Sunday, July 1.

"The National Advisor Bureau Limited has announced the launch of the official UAE-Iceberg Project website to highlight the most significant stages of the project, and its intended benefits in relation to the environment and the economy," the report said.

The gargantuan project has received wide media coverage internationally besides recommendation from various international organisations. Process is underway to set up a scientific body comprising scientists, experts and specialists and also collaborating with water research centres and institutions across the world, the report added.

The firm is also reportedly developing a unique technology that would reduce the cost of the project and also ensure that the ice doesn't melt while in transit.

The project will reportedly cost between US$50-60 million. The project's pilot phase will begin during in late 2019 towards Perth in Australia or Cape Town in South Africa. From there, measures will be taken to tow the masses to the eastern coast of the UAE in early 2020, Khaleej Times reported.

The iceberg-towing project will also make the UAE as the first desert nation to offer glacial tourism on its coasts, the report said.