Solar energy boom in the UAE .. Expectations of 9.2 gigawatts...

Othman Al Ali, CEO of the Emirates Water and Electricity Company, said that Abu Dhabi aims to reach 9.2 gigawatts of its photovoltaic capacity by 2030.

The largest solar power plant in the world

The UAE is working on building the Al Dhafra Solar PV Power Plant, the largest solar power plant in the world with a capacity of up to 2 GW of electricity in the Al Dhafra region. The plant will support the diversification of renewable energy sources in Abu Dhabi, raise the emirate’s overall capacity, and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The plant will enter operation in the second half of 2020. The plant aims to:

Reducing the emirate’s carbon emissions by more than 2.4 million metric tons annually, equivalent to removing about 470,000 cars from the road Saving electricity to more than 160,000 homes in the UAE Registering a tariff that is among the most competitive in the world in terms of the cost of solar photovoltaic energy of 4.97 fils per Raising the total production capacity of solar energy in Abu Dhabi to about 3.2 GW

Al Dhafra Station

He added that the Al Dhafra plant in the UAE capital is the largest in the world to produce electricity from solar energy, with a production capacity of 2 gigawatts, so that the production capacity of Abu Dhabi of photovoltaic energy reaches 3.2 gigawatts by 2022, indicating that the target is to generate from 4 to 6 gigawatts additional by 2030.

He explained that the station will contribute to reducing 2.4 metric tons annually of carbon, equivalent to removing 470,000 cars from the roads.

He confirmed that with the completion of the station, the total production capacity in Abu Dhabi of electricity generated from photovoltaic energy will increase to 3.2 gigawatts, equivalent to 15% of the total electrical energy generated in Abu Dhabi.

He pointed out that the Al Dhafra project has a cost of 4 billion dirhams, and 82% of it will be financed through debt, noting that the procedures required for financial closure are in their final stages.

Noor Abu Dhabi

In 2019, the commercial operation of the Noor Abu Dhabi station was announced for the largest independent solar power plant in the world, with a production capacity of 1,177 megawatts, which broke the record for obtaining the most competitive tariff in the world, amounting to 8,888 fils per kilowatt-hour.

The project enabled Abu Dhabi to increase its production of renewable energy and reduce the use of natural gas in generating electricity, which helps to make energy more sustainable and efficient, and reduces the carbon emissions of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi by one million metric tons per year, which is equivalent to removing 200 thousand cars from the emirate’s streets. .

Shams Station 1

In 2013 Shams 1 – the largest concentrated solar power plant in the world, and the first solar power plant in the Middle East – began commercial production operations, and works to provide 7% of Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy needs.

The production capacity of the station is about 100 megawatts, within a solar field consisting of 768 arrays of parabolic reflectors to collect solar energy and generate clean and renewable electrical energy, and the station generates electrical energy from the sun’s heat, not sunlight, unlike the technology of solar photovoltaic panels.

The station contributes to diversifying energy sources in the UAE, reducing the carbon footprint, and avoiding the release of 175,000 tons annually of carbon dioxide, equivalent to planting 1.5 million trees, or removing 15,000 cars from Abu Dhabi roads. The energy produced from the plant is sufficient to supply more than 20,000 homes in Abu Dhabi with their comprehensive electricity needs, throughout the year.

Abu Dhabi production of solar energy

With the commencement of commercial operation, the Al Dhafra solar PV plant will increase the total production capacity of solar energy in Abu Dhabi, to approximately 3.2 GW.

The plant is expected to contribute to reducing the carbon emissions of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi by more than 2.4 million metric tons annually, equivalent to removing about 470,000 cars from the road, after the start of commercial operation.

The plant begins the initial production phase in the first half of 2022, and will reach its full production capacity in the second half of 2022.

The Al Dhafra solar photovoltaic plant will provide electricity to nearly 160,000 homes, which is larger than the approximately 1.2 gigawatt “Noor Abu Dhabi” plant, which is currently the largest independent solar PV plant in the world.

a2050 Strategy

In 2017, the UAE launched its Energy Strategy 2050, with the aim of increasing the contribution of clean energy to the total energy mix produced in the country to about 50%. This strategy aims to save approximately $ 190 billion in the general energy cost until 2050, in addition to enhancing energy efficiency. At the individual and institutional level, at 40%

The International Energy Agency expects that the production of solar energy will lead to an increase in the supply of electricity from renewable sources in the next decade, as renewable energy is expected to account for 80 percent of the growth in electricity generation worldwide under the current circumstances.
In its annual global energy forecast, today, Tuesday, the agency said in its main vision – which reflects the policy intentions and goals already announced – that renewable energy sources are expected to surpass coal as the primary means of producing electricity by 2025.
She added that the combined share of photovoltaic and wind-powered solar energy in global electricity generation will rise to nearly 30 percent in 2030 from eight percent in 2019, with solar PV capacity growing by an average of 12 percent annually.

Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Energy Complex

Within the framework of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, in 2012 the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Energy Complex was announced, which is the largest renewable energy project in the world on a single site with an area of ​​4.5 square kilometers, in the Saih Al Dahl area on the Dubai-Al Ain Road.

The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Energy Complex is the largest strategic project for generating renewable energy in one location in the world according to the Independent Product System (IPP), where 1,000 megawatts will be generated by 2020 and 5,000 megawatts by 2030.

The first phase of the project with a capacity of 13 megawatts began in 2013 using photovoltaic panels (PV) and the second phase of producing 200 megawatts of electricity with photovoltaic panels was opened in March 2017, with the third phase operating with a capacity of 800 megawatts and using photovoltaic panels in 2020.

The fourth phase of the project will be operated using concentrated solar power (CSP) technology, with a capacity of 700 megawatts, starting in the last quarter of 2020. The fourth phase includes the highest solar tower in the world, with a height of about 260 meters.

The project is adopted by the Supreme Council of Energy in Dubai, and is managed and operated by the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, with a total project cost of 12 billion dirhams, and a production capacity of about one thousand megawatts.

Upon completion, the project will contribute to reducing 4 million tons of carbon emissions annually, which supports the green initiatives and programs implemented by the Dubai government to reduce carbon emissions.

The project is part of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, which aims to provide 7 percent of Dubai’s energy from clean energy sources by 2020, 25 percent by 2030 and 75 percent by 2050.