Dewa boosts clean energy production capacity by 600MW from solar park

In line with the UAE government's plan to increase clean projects’ share of its energy mix to 50 per cent by 2050, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) accelerated its efforts provide 100 per cent of Dubai’s total power production capacity from clean energy sources by 2050.

Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, managing ditector and CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), on Monday announced that the entity has added 300 megawatts of photovoltaic solar energy from the fifth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park this year.

In a statement, the Dubai-based power utility said the world’s largest single-site solar park using the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model will have a production capacity of 5,000 megawatts (MW) by 2030.

The fifth phase is currently underway, with a total capacity of 900MW and investments estimated at Dh2.058 billion. It will be operational in phases until 2023. This year, Dewa has added 300MW to the 300MW that became operational last year from the fifth phase.

“We are guided by the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to provide a state-of-the-art infrastructure that consolidates Dubai’s position as a preferred destination for living, working, investing and visiting," Al Tayer said.

"We are also prepared to meet the growing demand for electricity and water services according to the highest standards of availability, reliability, efficiency and quality," he said.

Suhail bin Mohammed Faraj Faris Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, on Sunday said the UAE would start revising its energy strategy at the beginning of 2023 to align it with the goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050.

Al Tayer noted that by adding 300MW from the 900MW fifth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park using photovoltaic solar panels, the current production capacity of the solar park has reached 1,827MW using photovoltaic solar panels.

He said Dewa is implementing other projects at the Solar Park with a total of 1,033MW using PV and Concentrated Solar Power (CSP). The share of clean energy in Dubai is about 12.8 per cent of the total installed capacity of 14,317 MW. This percentage is expected to reach 14 per cent by the end of 2022, he said.

"We strive to keep pace with demand by implementing pioneering projects to diversify sources of energy production to include various clean and renewable energy sources and technologies in Dubai and expand the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park projects. This will help achieve the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050 to provide 100 per cent of Dubai’s total power production capacity from clean energy sources by 2050,” said Al Tayer.

The fourth phase of the solar park, with a capacity of 950 MW and investments amounting to Dh15.78 billion according to the IPP model, is the largest concentrated single-site solar power plant that combines CSP and solar photovoltaic technologies. This phase will use three hybrid technologies: 600MW from a parabolic basin complex (three units of 200MW each), 100MW from the world’s tallest solar power tower at 262.44 metres (based on Molten Salt technology), and 250MW from photovoltaic solar panels.

On its completion, the project will have the largest thermal storage capacity in the world of 15 hours, allowing for energy availability around the clock. The fourth phase will provide clean energy for around 320,000 residences and reduce 1.6 million tonnes of carbon emissions yearly. A total of 217MW of the fourth phase using photovoltaic solar panels is already operational.

Dewa has invited international developers to send their expressions of interest (EOI) to implement the sixth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park based on the IPP model. The 900MW sixth phase of the Solar Park will be implemented using photovoltaic solar panels. It will become operational in stages starting from third quarter of 2025.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com