Dubai solar plant's Phase 1 to be ready in 2013

Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), announced in his speech at the MENA Renewable Energy Forum being held in Dubai, the emirate’s ongoing plans to build the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which will have a 1,000MW capacity by 2030, and, upon completion, will be one of the biggest solar parks in the region.

 This will make a substantial contribution to Dubai’s future energy needs. The first phase of 13 MW solar PV plant will be in operation before end of year 2013.

“His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced in January 2012 the launch of a long-term national initiative to build a green economy in the UAE entitled, “Green Economy for Sustainable Development,” which seeks to enhance the country's competitiveness and sustainability of its development, and preserve its environment,” said Al Tayer.

“The Supreme Council of Energy of Dubai was formed as a formal governing body and seeks to ensure sustainable energy resources for the emirate’s growing economy in a cost-effective manner, and reduce and mitigate any negative impact on the environment. Within this legal framework, the council governs all activities related to the energy sector in Dubai, including energy efficiency and resources management.

“In 2010, the council developed Dubai’s Integrated Energy Strategy 2030, and started implementation in January 2011. This strategy is driven by our vision to make Dubai a role model to the world in energy security and efficiency. Accordingly, the mission is to support Dubai’s economic growth, through a secure supply of energy and efficient energy usage, while meeting environmental and sustainability objectives,” he said.

“By 2030, Dubai’s average energy growth is projected to be in the range of 4-5 per cent per year and our target under the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy 2030, is to reduce energy consumption by 30 per cent through the implementation of enhanced energy-efficient initiatives and, by the same token, to significantly reduce the emissions of carbon dioxide. Currently, the combined power generation and desalinated water production in Dubai are most-efficiently produced using natural gas and LNG as the primary fuel (99 per cent), and supplemented by liquid fuel and diesel oil as a secondary fuel (1%). As per the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy, by 2030 Dubai will have diversified its fuel mix by adding new energy sources such as 12 per cent from clean coal, 5 per cent from renewable energy including solar power, 12 per cent from nuclear power and 71 per cent from gas,” added Al Tayer.

“The Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region is rich in hydrocarbon resources. However, with the increase in population and electricity consumption as well as climate change, concern is mounting over the future security of energy sources. Renewable energy can play an important role in alleviating these concerns and will contribute considerably to our energy supply mix in the future. The global fossil fuel energy consumption rate is in the order of 80 per cent of global total energy consumption. The reported information indicates that the Middle East has over half of the world's proven oil reserves, and over one-third of the world's natural gas reserves.  As a consequence, gas and oil are the primary fuel sources currently for power generation and water desalination, with a very minor contribution from renewable energy.

“In addition, we have identified that distributed rooftop solar power sources can make a practical contribution to Dubai’s power needs in the order of 20 per cent or around 2,500MW by 2030. Technical, commercial and legal frameworks are currently being put in place to facilitate the integration of solar power. Small scale applications of solar are in use in Dubai, such as in commercial and industrial buildings, street lights and so forth.  Recently, Dewa has constructed a building where over 25 per cent of its electricity needs are managed by solar energy.
Al Tayer concluded: “We at Dewa share the same goals as the rest of the world to secure a diverse and sustainable energy supply, through the integration of renewable energy into our energy mix, rationalisation of consumption and reduction of our carbon footprint.”

 

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