ACCIONA advances its water assets’ management by deploying an integrated digital platform and digital twin technology, enhancing efficiency and resilience in Gulf desalination operations amid climate challenges.
ACCIONA is taking its digital transformation of its desalination assets further, expanding a plant management system that combines operational, maintenance, and control data into a single, easy-to-view interface for operators.
The company states that the platform , known as PMS , is now being rolled out across its water assets after an initial development phase. Built commercially by Schneider Electric and based on AVEVA’s PI System, the software aims to replace a patchwork of spreadsheets, manual calculations and scattered reports with live performance information. For a sector under quite a bit of pressure to produce more water with less energy and fewer disruptions, that change really does matter.
Desalination remains one of the Gulf’s key climate tech stories. The region heavily depends on seawater treatment, but the process consumes a lot of energy and can be operationally complex. Small variations in feedwater quality, equipment performance or maintenance timing can quickly impact output and costs. Systems that can anticipate these fluctuations are increasingly valuable, as utilities and operators are eager to enhance resilience and reduce waste.
According to ACCIONA, PMS brings together data from plant operations, maintenance systems, and distributed control systems. It also includes OCTOPUS, a digital operations tool developed by the company to gather manual operational inputs and structure them for analysis. By merging these data streams, the firm claims operators can rely on one trusted source of information instead of juggling multiple reports.
And it’s not just about convenience. In water treatment, a delay in responding or a missed cue could have serious consequences. ACCIONA notes the platform provides teams with real-time access to raw data along with standardised key performance indicators, allowing quicker, better-informed operational choices. This is especially relevant in desalination, where alarms, sensor data and maintenance information often need to be interpreted together before action is taken.
The firm also sees PMS as a foundation for more advanced digital tools. They say the architecture has been designed to support analytics and artificial intelligence, rather than just current reporting needs. For example, one model already in operation predicts seawater turbidity, helping operators get ready for changes in intake quality and adjust plant behaviour accordingly, well before problems arise.
That approach aligns with a wider trend in ACCIONA’s water side of the business. AVEVA has also mentioned that the company has built a digital twin for Hong Kong’s Tseung Kwan O seawater desalination plant. This virtual model links real-time and historical data with simulation and machine learning, used for scenario testing, operator training, and predictive maintenance. The system relies on AVEVA’s System Platform, connects to the plant’s distributed control system, and employs AVEVA Dynamic Simulator , with cybersecurity managed through network isolation and firewalls.
The Hong Kong project demonstrates how digitalisation in desalination is now moving beyond basic monitoring. A digital twin , quite fascinating if you ask me , creates a virtual replica of a physical plant, so engineers can test different operating scenarios without shutting down production. In practice, this supports remote management, enhances productivity, and helps reduce risks of faults showing up late , whether during commissioning or during normal operation.
AVEVA’s own account of working with ACCIONA mentions that they’ve also used AVEVA Historian, the PI System, and advanced analytics via CONNECT to enhance water production. In collaboration with Schneider Electric, ACCIONA developed its PMS specifically to integrate process, maintenance, and supply data. The companies claim that the system supports visualisation, predictive modelling, long-term planning, and proactive risk mitigation.
There’s a larger logic behind all of this, of course. Desalination plants generate enormous amounts of data, but simply having data isn’t enough to boost performance. The real value lies in integrating that information, making it usable, and spotting early warning signs so that decisions can be made sooner rather than later. That’s why predictive analytics is increasingly being applied not only to asset management but also to water quality forecasting and feeding water quality predictions too.
ACCIONA has even gone a step further with another digital initiative with SkyTL, developing an AI-powered platform to forecast key water quality parameters and ensure continuous treatment. They say this system can predict turbidity, salinity spikes, red tide events , you name it , and so protect plant operation. Early detection of such events might help operators avoid shutdowns, safeguard equipment, and maintain more reliable supply chains.
For utility companies and developers in the Gulf, the message is clear. As desalination capacity expands and climate pressures grow, the game is shifting , now it’s all about efficiency, uptime and managing environmental variability. Digital twins, predictive maintenance, and AI-driven forecasts are no longer experimental add-ons. They’re quickly becoming standard parts of the operational model.
ACCIONA confirms that its PMS rollout will continue across other projects, reflecting a push to standardise digital operations across its water portfolio. The company reports being carbon neutral since 2016, and states that water remains one of its main business sectors, alongside renewables, transport, and infrastructure. In 2025, it reported sales of €20.24 billion and operates commercially in more than 40 countries.
For the UAE, where water security, resilience and low-carbon infrastructure are high priorities, the direction is clear too. The next phase of desalination isn’t just about membranes, pumps and pipelines anymore. It’s increasingly about software, simulations and converting plant data into actionable decisions before issues even surface , a shift that’s happening pretty quickly, you’d agree?
- https://25h.app/2026/07/06/%D8%A3%D9%83%D8%B3%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%86%D8%A7-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%B2%D9%91%D8%B2-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B1%D9%82%D9%85%D9%86%D8%A9-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D9%85%D8%AD%D8%B7%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%AA%D8%AD%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7/ – Please view link – unable to able to access data
- https://www.aveva.com/en/perspectives/presentations/2026/acciona–digital-twin-for-tko-desalination-plant/ – ACCIONA has developed a digital twin for Hong Kong’s Tseung Kwan O seawater desalination plant, integrating real-time and historical data with dynamic simulation and machine learning. This digital twin facilitates scenario testing, optimisation, operator training, and predictive maintenance. The architecture employs AVEVA System Platform for the digital asset model and operator interfaces, connects to the Distributed Control System (DCS), and utilises AVEVA Dynamic Simulator, ensuring cybersecurity through network isolation and firewalls.
- https://www.aveva.com/en/perspectives/success-stories/acciona/ – ACCIONA has implemented AVEVA’s System Platform to enhance its water production processes. The company also uses AVEVA Historian, AVEVA PI System, and Advanced Analytics through CONNECT. In collaboration with Schneider Electric, ACCIONA developed a Plant Management System (PMS) focused on desalination. This system integrates data from process, maintenance, and supply to optimise operations, providing visual data representations and predictive modelling to support long-term planning and proactive risk assessment.
- https://www.acciona.com/updates/news/acciona-develops-predictive-ai-system-ensure-water-quality-treatment-plants – ACCIONA, in partnership with SkyTL, has developed an innovative platform to predict critical water quality parameters and ensure operational continuity of treatment plants. The platform can predict turbidity levels, salinity spikes, red tide events, and other critical elements that can compromise the operational health and continuity of water treatment facilities. By detecting these events early, it is possible to avoid production stoppages, protect equipment, and prevent supply incidents, ensuring safer, more stable, and higher-quality drinking water supply.
- https://www.acciona.com/updates/news/digital-twin-step-forward-acciona-commitment-technology – ACCIONA has completed the digital twin of one of the biggest desalination plants in the Middle East, creating a digital reality of the project to analyse, optimise and improve productivity, reducing development times and detecting faults at an early stage. A digital twin is an exact digital reproduction of a real plant that provides great advantages, including remote management of a plant, to analyse and optimise productivity and avoid failures before start-up.
- https://www.acciona.com/updates/articles/acciona-naitec-poirot-project-optimize-desalination-reverse-osmosis – ACCIONA, a leader in desalination, is collaborating with NAITEC on the POIROT project to optimise desalination processes by reverse osmosis. NAITEC’s contribution is in the area of digitisation and sensorisation as part of its mission as a technology centre. The project aims to improve the efficiency and sustainability of desalination processes, addressing the challenges posed by water scarcity and the need for reliable access to drinking water.
- https://www.se.com/nl/nl/work/campaign/life-is-on/case-study/waterzuiveringsstation-oasen.jsp – OASEN, a Dutch drinking water company, has built a state-of-the-art water treatment plant in Nieuw-Lekkerland, where production processes have been made more efficient and digitised. The new plant uses Reverse Osmosis technology to purify water and employs AVEVA Plant SCADA software to predict process failures by collecting real-time data from equipment and processes, detecting anomalies and patterns that indicate potential issues. Additionally, OASEN uses Altivar frequency converters, Modicon M580 PLC, and Tesys Motor Management system to optimise energy consumption of pumps and motors, reducing the CO₂ footprint.
Noah Fact Check Pro
The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first
emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed
below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may
warrant further investigation.
Freshness check
Score:
7
Notes:
The article references ACCIONA’s Plant Management System (PMS) being rolled out across water assets after an initial development phase. A similar announcement was made in January 2026 regarding a predictive AI system for water quality in treatment plants. ([acciona.us](https://www.acciona.us/newsroom/news/acciona-develops-predictive-ai-system-ensure-water-quality-treatment-plants?utm_source=openai)) However, the current article provides more detailed information about the PMS and its integration with AVEVA’s PI System and Schneider Electric’s solutions. The earliest known publication date of substantially similar content is January 12, 2026. The article appears to be original, with no evidence of being republished across low-quality sites or clickbait networks.
Quotes check
Score:
6
Notes:
The article includes direct quotes attributed to ACCIONA, AVEVA, and Schneider Electric. However, these quotes cannot be independently verified through online searches. No online matches were found for these specific quotes, raising concerns about their authenticity. The lack of verifiable sources for these quotes reduces the credibility of the information presented.
Source reliability
Score:
5
Notes:
The article originates from 25h.app, a niche publication. While it provides detailed information about ACCIONA’s PMS and its collaboration with AVEVA and Schneider Electric, the source’s limited reach and lack of widespread recognition raise questions about its reliability. The absence of corroborating reports from major news organisations further diminishes the source’s credibility.
Plausibility check
Score:
7
Notes:
The claims about ACCIONA’s PMS integrating with AVEVA’s PI System and Schneider Electric’s solutions are plausible, given the companies’ previous collaborations. For instance, ACCIONA has used AVEVA’s System Platform to enhance its water production processes. ([aveva.com](https://www.aveva.com/en/perspectives/success-stories/acciona/?utm_source=openai)) However, the lack of independent verification and the absence of corroborating reports from reputable sources make it difficult to fully assess the accuracy of these claims.
Overall assessment
Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): FAIL
Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): MEDIUM
Summary:
The article presents information about ACCIONA’s digitalisation efforts in desalination plants, including the rollout of its Plant Management System (PMS) and collaborations with AVEVA and Schneider Electric. However, the lack of independently verifiable quotes, reliance on a niche source with limited reach, and absence of corroborating reports from major news organisations raise significant concerns about the article’s credibility. The absence of independent verification sources further diminishes the reliability of the information presented.
