Iran-Water Resources Research

Iran-Water Resources Research

Assessment of Hydro-Economic Value of Oman Sea Water Transfer to Razavi Khorasan Province vs. Management of Non-Strategic Agriculture

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
1 M.Sc. Student, Department of Water Engineering and Management, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.
2 Professor, Department of Water Resources Engineering, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.
3 Associate Professor, Water Resources Department, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.
Abstract
To face the severe water scarcity in eastern Iran, a 1342-km pipeline project has been proposed to transfer 120 MCM/year from the Oman Sea to the city of Mashhad. Meanwhile, the region's substantial agricultural exports represent significant virtual water outflows. This study employs a water footprint framework to compare the proposed pipeline's costs (water volume, energy use, and financial expenses) with virtual water flows from agricultural exports, focusing on cucurbit crops as water-intensive and non-strategic products. Our analysis reveales that the region exports 257 MCM/year of virtual water through these crops- more than double the pipeline's proposed capacity. Moreover, their trades provide 0.55$ net profit per m3 with only 0.33 kWh electricity consumption, compared to the pipeline′s 3.2/m³ cost and 27.3 kWh/m³ energy demand. These findings underscore the need to prioritize alternative water management given that an investment of about 6.8 billion euros has been planned for the above-mentioned project.
 
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  • Receive Date 13 May 2025
  • Revise Date 23 July 2025
  • Accept Date 31 July 2025