Reliance on water production by desalination as a solution to water scarcity is growing worldwide. High energy demands of seawater desalination raise new challenges for both water and energy management and highlight the importance of understanding the operational dependencies of the water sector on energy supplies. This study provides an in-depth analysis of the impact of the water-energy nexus in a desalination-based water sector, using Israel as a case study. Being large energy consumers, desalination plants are part of the Electricity Load Shedding Program (ELSP), which government energy regulators invoke in times of energy shortage. We focus on the interdependency between the two sectors as manifested at the time of ELSP utilization during an extreme heat wave. We show that energy shedding compensation is 6 to 14 times greater than the economic loss to the desalination plant from no water production, creating an obvious economic incentive to participate in ELSPs. However, this imbalance has a substantial negative impact on the water sector, which may compromise the level of service. Our evaluation concludes that the government authorities regulating water and energy need an official mechanism and policy for joint management strategies that can ensure economic efficiency and reduce the risk of power and water shortages during extreme events.

全球范围内越来越依赖海水淡化来解决水资源短缺问题。海水淡化的高能源需求给水和能源管理带来了新的挑战，并凸显了了解水务部门运营对能源供应的依赖性的重要性。本研究以以色列为案例研究，深入分析了水与能源关系对海水淡化水行业的影响。作为能源消耗大户，海水淡化厂是电力减载计划（ELSP）的一部分，政府能源监管机构在能源短缺时援引该计划。我们重点关注两个部门之间的相互依赖关系，正如在极端热浪期间使用 ELSP 时所体现的那样。我们发现，能源削减补偿是海水淡化厂因停水而造成的经济损失的 6 至 14 倍，这为参与 ELSP 创造了明显的经济激励。然而，这种不平衡对水务部门产生了重大负面影响，可能会降低服务水平。我们的评估得出的结论是，监管水和能源的政府当局需要制定联合管理策略的官方机制和政策，以确保经济效率并降低极端事件期间电力和水资源短缺的风险。