INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT
MENA RENEWABLE ENERGY SPOTLIGHT An overview of the growth of renewable energy across the Middle East and Northern Africa, and the increasing exploitation of solar power Writer: Phoebe Harper | Project Manager: Krisha Canlas
O
ver the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, global carbon emissions fell at their fastest rate since the Second World War. In line with this drop, the acceptance and use of renewable energies (RE) continued to grow on a promising trajectory. As revealed by bp’s Statistical Review of World Energy 2021, during this time, the use of solar power across the world recorded its largest ever increase. Although wind energy contributed the highest growth in renewable resources, solar electricity rose by an unprecedented 20 percent to 1.3 exajoules (EJ), with overall solar capacity expanding by 127 gigawatts (GW). Until recent times, the hydrocarbon-rich economies found throughout the Middle Eastern and Northern Africa (MENA) region, have been perceived as generally falling behind in the development and deployment of RE. Saudi Arabia in particular has come under scrutiny as the world’s 10th-largest emitter of carbon dioxide, leading to a subsequent net zero pledge to reach this commitment by 2060 in time for the COP26 climate change summit.
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Indeed, in terms of global regions, MENA has the lowest share of renewable energy in terms of overall energy consumption. The aforementioned bp report found that RE accounted for less than 1.5 percent of all electricity generation across the region, compared to the worldwide average of more than 10 percent. In spite of this, the MENA region boasts enormous RE potential, particularly within both solar and wind power. The Middle East Institute (MEI) estimates that, if fully exploited, MENA would have the capacity to produce solar power to a level that would amount to 60 percent of global electricity demand. Across the region’s landscape, the majority of areas boast a solar potential of daily direct normal irradiation (DNI) above five kilowatts (kWh) per square metre – a key indicator that solar power is economically viable. Fortunately, the acceptance of solar power across MENA is growing, in alignment with the increasingly affordable costs of the technology and systems to facilitate it. The technology behind PV modules is advancing, and so is battery storage, as the solar market matures.
MIDDLE EAST SOLAR INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (MESIA)
trade, and opportunities for job creation. This is best exemplified by Morocco, where the development of a local industry surrounding solar water heaters has served to create 13,000 jobs. Across the region, the combined energy goals of various countries translate to an expected 80 GW of renewable capacity by 2030, based on the successful fruition of these commitments. This is evidenced by initiatives such as the Pan-Arab Clean Energy Initiative (PACE), a key component of the future roadmap for renewables across MENA.
MENA RENEWABLE ENERGY CAPACITY TARGETS: Morocco – 52 percent by 2030 UAE – 44 percent by 2050 Egypt – 42 percent by 2035 Saudi Arabia – 30 percent by 2030 Tunisia – 30 percent by 2030 Libya – 22 percent by 2030 Qatar – 20 percent by 2030 Bahrain – 10 percent by 2035
INTRODUCTION
From 2015 onwards, the development of RE across MENA has enjoyed significant growth, as shown by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). In 2016, $11 billion was invested in RE across MENA – a staggering leap compared to $1.2 billion in 2008. Reflective of this heightened investment, Saudi Arabia is now considered a global frontrunner in RE development with the country marking a world record for solar prices from the Sakaka Photovoltaic Solar Project – a 300 megawatt (MW) solar project located in Al Jouf Province. Sakaka is significant as the first ever utility scale RE project to be included in the National Renewable Energy Programme of Saudi Arabia. In the oil-rich lands of the UAE, RE is becoming increasingly attractive thanks to the falling costs of the necessary technologies, as the country transitions from an oil exporter to major importer of natural gas. With economic conditions favouring greater RE deployment, the UAE is being encouraged to exceed its current targets. Such advancements will only be possible with the greater involvement of government agencies in regulation and tendering within the energy sector. The growing use of RE across MENA is intrinsically linked to the area’s socio-economic development, as its deployment will not only reduce carbon emissions, but also increase economic diversification and growth, a healthier balance of
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EDF Renewables
EME Outlook (EO): Introduce EDF Renewables, how long it has been active in the MENA region? Olivier Bordes, CEO Middle East (OB): As a subsidiary of the EDF Group, EDF Renewables is a leading international player in the renewable energies industry worldwide and continues to grow by moving into promising markets in the Middle East and Africa. Our company develops, builds, and operates clean energy power plants in more than 20 countries both for our own account and for third parties, alongside providing operation and maintenance. With gross installed capacity of 13.8 GW worldwide, EDF Renewables secured a portfolio of 3.5 GW of sustainable renewable power plants in the Middle East. The company has strong positions in offshore and onshore wind power, as well as in large utility-scale solar power plants. Moreover, the company is developing a multilayer low-carbon solutions portfolio, as well as innovative solutions in the renewable energies sector: energy storage, renewable hybrid solutions and fully customised low-carbon solar solutions. EDF Renewables is playing an unavoidable role towards a sustainable future and carbon-free energy production worldwide. One of EDF Group’s driving ambitions is to triple our business outside Europe and double our renewables net installed capacity from 2015 to 2030; which is equal to developing 30 additional GW by 2030. EO: What does the current state of the renewable energy industry look like in the Middle East? How exciting or challenging is the space? OB: The region is experiencing an incredible acceleration of solar development. Over the past five years, the industry has secured almost eight GW, and the combined programmes of various countries represents a global target of 55 GW by 2030. This carbon free ambition is even more accelerated now, after Saudi Arabia’s commitments to net zero emissions by 2060. EDF Renewables is committed to supporting these programmes through investment, competitiveness, and proper execution. We are fully committed to support GCC and surrounding regions with a wide range of low carbon solutions such as hybrid plants, micro and offgrid, storage and low-carbon solar solutions. Our strength is to offer a diverse range of innovative solutions to meet specific electricity demand versus the intermittence of renewable energies. This includes hybrid plants that combine CSP and PV, or smaller hybrid PV battery saving fuel in off grid diesel plants. We also offer battery systems to aid the integration of large-scale projects into the system or Pumped Hydro Storage Power Plants. Finally, EDF Renewables is looking with interest toward the promising market of Green H2 and low-carbon solar solutions. EO: Do you have any significant ongoing or recent projects that you would like to showcase? OB: We are very proud to support the Middle East in its energy transition and innovation is key to our utility scale wind, solar and storage projects. EDF Renewables is active in various areas through major projects, including three utility-scale solar power plants and the largest wind farm in the region. As the largest foreign investor in the renewable sector across the region, the large-scale projects in Middle East are perfectly in line
Solar park DEWA Phase III, UAE
with our strategy and the GCC region is a strategic market for EDF Renewables. Furthermore, EDF Renewables is fully in line with the goals implemented by Middle Eastern countries aiming to reduce their carbon footprint and to develop low-carbon energy solutions. Once commissioned, our main projects will represent a portfolio of 3.5 GW clean power generation plants: • Phase three of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai (800 MW) is fully operational since last year, and this project already powers 160,000 homes in Dubai. We have successfully established a new Operation and Maintenance company alongside our partner Masdar: Energize O&M which will handle the plant. • Al Dhafrah solar plant, in Abu Dhabi, with a total power installation of 2 GW is now under construction. Once completed, this state of the art solar plant will be the biggest single utility scale solar park worldwide, using over four million bifacial solar panels, 33 thousand sun trackers and will offset over 2.4 million metric tonnes of CO2, equivalent to the emissions of 1.3 million cars driven for a year. • 300 MW solar project in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. We recently launched the construction of the solar park with our long-term partners Masdar and Nesma. This will be our first utility-scale solar plant in Saudi Arabia. • Dumat Al Jandal, a 400 MW landmark wind farm is the largest and most powerful wind farm in the Middle East. The project is already producing clean energy and will be fully operational within weeks. The project consists of 99 wind turbine generators, each with a nominal power of 4.2 MW. EO: Are you optimistic about the future of renewable energies in the Middle East and EDF’s role within this? OB: The Middle East region historically has a strong dependency on oil and gas. However, these countries have an amazing potential of granted solar resources available. With the increasing competitiveness of solar energy, governments have launched their transition to clean energy sources with ambitious long-term plans. We are spectators of the solar industry being well adopted in the region and creating a lot of jobs, often switching from conventional to renewable energies. The Renewable Energy sector has a bright future in all segments - large scale, off-grid, C&I, residential area and many more.
Olivier BORDES EDF Renewables CEO and Managing Director, Middle East
Olivier Bordes has been developing projects in the Middle East North Africa region for the last 10 years in the renewables sector, as well as in the thermal and distribution fields. Olivier is today in charge of EDF Renewables’ portfolio in the Middle East developing and operating over 3.5 GW of solar and wind iconic projects. He is managing teams across the region, based in United Arab Emirates, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Oman, and his responsibilities relate from business development of multilayer renewable solutions through construction to assets management. He has an extensive experience in off-grid solutions development, as well as IPP project development and distribution. He holds a Master of Electrical Engineering from Ecole des Mines, France.
Wind farm Dumat Al Jandal, KSA
INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT
Interview: Middle East Solar Industry Association (MESIA)
INTERVIEW
As the most respected non-profit trade association in the renewables sector, President of MESIA, Ahmed S. Nada, discusses the upwards trajectory of solar energy across the MENA region and leveraging a digital presence to further its goal of promoting a solar-powered future.
Ahmed S. Nada President
T
he Middle East Solar Industry Association (MESIA) was established in 2009, as a nonprofit trade association dedicated to the promotion of solar energy across the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA). As a highly respected and industry-leading advisory voice, MESIA continues to fully support and guide its members in an ever-evolving industry, whilst disseminating invaluable information on the potential of solar energy. Since its inception, MESIA has expanded to include over 100 local, regional, and international members. We speak with President of the association, Ahmed S. Nada, to find out more. EME Outlook (EO): Can you talk us through the origins of MESIA; how it came about and its initial vision? Ahmed S. Nada, President (AN): MESIA was created when a group of individual solar pioneers came together with the aim of bringing the initial knowledge of the industry to the Middle East,
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which has historically been a region that is reliant on fossil fuel energy. The group was led by Vahid Fotuhi, who at the time was working for BP Solar, and Professor Georgeta Vidican, who used to work for Masdar Institute. After a successful launch event on November 23rd 2009, the group established a steering committee made up of the key value chain players in the solar industry. MESIA became licensed by the Community Development Authority (CDA) in Dubai to operate as a not-for-profit trade association in 2013. These players went on to become the founding members of MESIA, successfully instilling the roots of what would emerge as the largest and most respected solar association in the MENA region, now forming a group of 70 regional and international companies and hundreds of members. EO: Since inception, how has MESIA developed and progressed in terms of its key objectives and the messages it tries to get across? AN: The mission of MESIA as a non-profit, nongovernmental organisation remains fundamentally the same as it was at its inception. Our primary goal remains the promotion of solar energy in the MENA region, but the world today is not the world in which MESIA was created. The market has matured, positive adoption of solar and technology has reached advanced stages, and so our goals have evolved to continue supporting our members through different means. Increasing our
MIDDLE EAST SOLAR INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (MESIA)
digital presence has been a prime goal to become the largest digital solar network in the region by providing news, promoting digital solar technologies and creating unique promotional digital event opportunities for our members. We remain a knowledge transfer and sharing solar platform but with a digital spin. EO: What do you find most exciting about working within the renewable energies sector? AN: Advancing the agenda of renewables in our life in general, and solar in particular, has been the key driver and most exciting part of this journey. Today, we see how competitive solar can contribute to storage, and green hydrogen is making this journey even more exciting. Competitive solar energy prices per kWh is enabling even more green technology offerings.
EO: On the flip side, what are its biggest challenges? AN: Like any industry, the solar industry can face disruptions in its supply chain, causing the economics of projects to be distracted from their original plans. As the world wakes up from COVID-19 and its implications on all industrial value chains, the solar industry will have to adjust. Hence, MESIA must continue to voice its mission to keep supporting its members. EO: What trends are currently transforming the renewable energies sector across the MENA region? How are you responding to them? AN: Each day, a new country in the MENA region sets new goals for net zero. Green hydrogen generated from renewable energy, and particularly EME Outlook issue 44 | 7
INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT
from solar projects, will make a fundamental transformation to our region. Further electrification means more renewables penetration to the grid, which in turn will add more pressure on storage technologies. In terms of response, the political and economic willingness of our leadership is obvious and pronounced in the MENA region across its large economies, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Egypt and hopefully soon North Africa. MESIA continues to be part of the agenda, setting policy support and technology promotion through its digitised platform and soon, more face-to-face events.
Joumana Hosri Interview at 2021 MESIA Solar Awards
WHY SHOULD YOU BECOME A MEMBER OF MESIA? • Enjoy access to solar-industry related workshops, lectures and briefings • High-level and focused networking opportunities
INTERVIEW
• Exposure to key stakeholders in both the public and private sector • White-papers and research reports on topics related to solar technology policies • Marketing and visibility
EO: Have you got any projects in the pipeline you wish to highlight? AN: MESIA wants to further engage with the new generation, the younger students whose education platforms will see more engagement with renewables and the electrification of their lives. It is critical to keep them engaged for the future. Next year, our Solar Awards will be celebrating their 10th anniversary, and with it, new categories have been created to reflect industry changes. Submissions are always free of charge, and we will continue holding this event as an unbiased celebration of top solar performers in the region. Also, our flagship report will again be released in January at the World Future Energy Summit, covering new areas, countries and expert contributors. To view the 2021 Outlook report, click here.
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Oliver Bordes Interview at 2021 MESIA Solar Awards
EO: How do you see MESIA developing over the next five years? AN: We believe it is important that we continue developing the support that we provide to our members, from positioning to entering the market, and creating incremental solutions to do so. Ensuring we deliver both quality content and unique networking opportunities will continue to remain at the centre of our initiatives. Additionally, we would like to extend our reach to universities and students, but also training to support educational programmes and initiatives that are inclusive and will promote growth and talent within the industry. EO: Finally, are you optimistic about the future of the sector across MENA? AN: Absolutely. It is clear from looking at GWs installed to future project announcements, and with net zero commitments expanding in the UAE and across the entire region, that the future for solar and sustainable energy sources is on a path to continuous growth. There is an increased consciousness of the need to do more about building a more sustainable world all around, and energy is at the core of it.
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E D I TO R I A L :
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Phoebe Harper +44 (0) 1603 363 655 phoebe.harper@outlookpublishing.com
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MIDDLE EAST SOLAR INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (MESIA) Office No. 16, Dubai Investment Park 1, P.O. Box 552, Dubai, United Arab Emirates Tel: (971) 50 409 9197 marketing@mesia.com www.mesia.com
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