UAE WARMS UP TO SOLAR
DUBAI — 2016 was a record-breaking year for the solar power industry in the Middle East and North Africa region, with the UAE continuing to dominate the market in terms of large projects.
The UAE will continue leading the industry, with the implementation of two mega solar photovoltaic PV projects awarded, and one concentrated solar power CSP project up for tender in the first half of H in Dubai. Wim Alen, general secretary of the Middle East Solar Industry Association Mesia , noted that the increasing demand for electricity, drinking water, and cooling in an environment that more and more recognises the value of sustainable clean energy will accelerate further solar penetration in the Middle East for both centralised and distributed power plants, and also have a wider impact on solar thermal power in industrial applications.
According to Mesia’s H Solar Outlook Report, at the end of H E, \ MW of solar capacity was operational in the Mena region. One year later, about HHMW was added to the installed base, and by April this year an additional HHMW will come online. After the award of the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority’s Dewa GHHMW Phase III project, and the bid for the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority’s Adwea Sweihan project, H will be characterised by the start of the implementation of these two landmark projects in the Middle East.
“At 2.99 US cents per kWh, the contract for the Dewa’s Phase III awarded to Masdar was the world’s lowest unsubsidised solar power price in the first half of 2016. It was not a one-off occurrence. By September 2016, we witnessed another world-record-low tariff in Abu Dhabi with a new record-low levelised cost of electricity for large scale solar power at 2.42 US cents per kWh,” Alen noted.
Mesia’s report noted that the UAE has established itself as a key solar market over the past couple of years and will continue to show leadership in 2017, particularly Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
After a landmark power purchase agreement of only 5.85 US cents per kWh was signed in 2014 for the second phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, 2016 saw Phase III awarded with 800MW for delivery over three phases until 2020 at 2.99 US cents per kWh. The final size of the park in 2030 was also upped from 1GW originally to 3GW in early 2015, and to 5GW by the end of 2015. Based on the latter figure, the solar park will be the largest of its kind in the world.
In addition, the Dewa is expected to tender a 200MW solar thermal project based on molten salt tower technology in 2017. The bid submission date is expected to be scheduled in May 2017. Hence, the award and closing will happen in the second half of 2017.
The Dewa has made it no secret that it is looking for a tariff below eight US cents per kWh, which would set another world record for solar thermal power. Indeed, it intends to build the largest CSP fleet in the world, using the independent power producer model and the 200MW will be the first of several such CSP projects. It is expected to be operational by April 2021. The Dewa targets to generate 1,000MW using this technology by 2030 at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.
Mesia’s report also revealed that rooftop solar is proving to be an important contributor to the renewables strategy, with consumers large and small being exposed to the benefits, both financial and environmental. “Rooftop solar kicked off in the UAE with approximately 6MW up and running by the end of 2016,” Alen noted. “It is expected that the rooftop market in the UAE could reach 70MW in 2017. This would mean more than tenfold growth in a one-year period.”
Dubai has once again taken the lead in the segment, with a number of large rooftop solar plants being announced recently including a 1.5MW system deployed at the Jebel Ali Power Station, and the Dubai solar schools programme, which targets around 50MW over three years of systems installed in schools across the emirate. Al Nabooda Automobiles has also signed a solar lease for the development of 6.7MW of solar power to their new DIC facility, while Aramex has a new 3MW system on their logistics facility.
— rohma@khaleejtimes.com