Saudi Arabia plans to construct five solar facilities by the end of 2015, as part of the country’s aim to generate electricity from environment-friendly resources.
The plants will be developed by the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE).
Saudi Electricity Company had requested KACARE to set up five station at Qaisomah (Eastern Province), Rafha (Northern Borders), Wadi Al-Dawaser (Riyadh), Mahd Al-Dahab (Madinah) and Sharourah (Najran), Saudi Gazette reported quoting a KACARE source.
Currently, all required approval for the commencement of the projects has been received.
Land allocations for the plants have been done, and KACARE will begin receiving bids for the construction of these stations.
The publication quoted the source as saying: "KACARE has conducted detailed studies for the integration of renewable energy electricity generating power stations with SEC network to ensure the continuity of power supply, and the experiment will be applies to other cities as needed by SEC," he said.
Meanwhile, KACARE has also paced up its steps for the construction of the first nuclear station for the generation of electricity.
Recently, the kingdom announced its plans to generate electricity from a landfill in Jeddah. As part of this plan, KACARE has inked a deal with Jeddah Company for Development and Urbanization to generate 5-10MW power from the dump site. The project is likely to commence in 2015.
In 2013, the country announced its plans to set up 17 nuclear power stations with an investment of over $100bn by 2030.
Energy Business Review
23 September
