I think $2000-$3000 price is the price Carlsbad pays for its desalinated water ([1]): " January 17, 2008, article in the Wall Street Journal stated, "In Novemb

I think $2000-$3000 price is the price Carlsbad pays for its desalinated water ([1]): " January 17, 2008, article in the Wall Street Journal stated, "In November, Connecticut-based Poseidon Resources Corp. won a key regulatory approval to build the $300 million water-desalination plant in Carlsbad, north of San Diego. The facility would produce 50,000,000 US gallons (190,000,000 l; 42,000,000 imp gal) of drinking water per day, enough to supply about 100,000 homes ... Improved technology has cut the cost of desalination in half in the past decade, making it more competitive ... Poseidon plans to sell the water for about $950 per acre-foot [1,200 cubic meters (42,000 cu ft)]. That compares with an average [of] $700 an acre-foot [1200 m³] that local agencies now pay for water."In June 2012, new estimates were released that showed the cost for the desalinated water had risen to $2,329 per acre-foot. Each $1,000 per acre-foot works out to $3.06 for 1,000 gallons, or $.81 per cubic meter." This particularly bad implementation does not mean it could not be made better. In the same source [1], "In 2014, the Israeli cities of Hadera, Palmahim, Ashkelon, and Sorek were desalinizing water for less than US$0.40 per cubic meter.[28] As of 2006, Singapore was desalinating water for US$0.49 per cubic meter." As for subsidizing the water plants, the question is unclear, but I've got an impression that it's not the case, the Soreq technology seems to be really more efficient. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Desalination#Economics https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Desalination#Economics