Accra:Antalya King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) has announced the launch of the KAUST Coral Restoration Initiative’s large-scale coral facility on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast. This facility is part of a major effort to restore and advance Saudi Arabia's marine conservation by growing corals at scale in a land-based nursery and research campus.
According to Saudi Press Agency, the initiative was unveiled at COP31 in Antalya, amidst concerns over the severe impact of the fourth global coral bleaching event, which affected over 84% of the world’s reef area between 2023 and 2025. The facility aims to produce up to 360,000 corals annually, with plans to outplant over two million corals across 100 hectares of reef at Shushah Island by 2030, and to establish a resilient reef ecosystem by 2040.
The Red Sea's unique coral resilience to warm and salty waters makes it an ideal location for this initiative. The KAUST Coral Restoration Initiative (KCRI) combines the Red Sea’s corals with KAUST’s marine science expertise to develop methods for growing corals that can withstand warmer water before being returned to the reef. The initiative is supported by the Coral Research and Development Accelerator Platform (CORDAP), focusing on global coral reef conservation and restoration efforts.
KCRI integrates various components, including a large-scale land-based coral nursery, sea-based nurseries, and over 50 research programs. These programs explore coral probiotics, heat-resilient corals, robotics, AI-driven modeling, and eCoral, a digital twin of the reefscape for guiding coral planting and monitoring.
Saudi scientists, divers, and aquarists are instrumental in KCRI’s restoration activities, contributing to the development of coral cultivation, marine science, and reef restoration expertise. Beyond restoration, KCRI represents a significant investment in Saudi Arabia’s marine science capabilities and offers a framework for coral restoration programs worldwide. KAUST is collaborating with international partners to safeguard coral diversity for future generations.
Source Saudi Press Agency