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ANALYSIS

Saudi on track to become global solar leader

RIYADH, September 9, 2014

Saudi Arabia's target for an installed solar capacity of 41 GW by 2032 is by far the most ambitious solar target in the world, said an industry expert, adding that he kingdom could easily become one of the largest solar markets globally.

Browning Rockwell, executive director of the Saudi Arabia Solar Industry Association (Sasia), was speaking ahead of the second edition of the solar energy conference Desert Solar in Saudi Arabia scheduled to be held on September 17 and 18 in Riyadh at the Sheraton Riyadh Hotel & Towers.

With coal plants on track to become redundant, global power companies will be forced to change their business model, said Jeremy Leggett, a prominent international solar thought leader and a keynote speaker at the conference.

Solar energy deployment will transform the face of the energy industry by 2020, he added.

Echoing Leggett’s vision, a solar report from the world's largest private bank UBS, highlighted that large-scale power stations will be redundant within 10-20 years, with solar technology taking their place as chief power source.

These statements are in line with the predictions of the second keynote speaker at the conference, Thierry Lepercq, founder and president of France-based Solairedirect, a world leader in the development of large photovoltaic (PV) power plants.

Around 2020 solar energy will become available at $0.05-$0.07/kWh by 2020, according to Lepercq. “By then, solar PV power would be by far the cheapest energy in the world,” he said.

Dr Michael Sterner, an international authority in the field of energy storage and yet another keynote speaker at the conference, added: "In combination with short-and long-term storage, renewable energy can replace existing power plants as a whole without power failure or malfunctions."

"We are delighted to have Jeremy speak at the conference," said Edwin Koot, CEO of Solarplaza, a co-organiser of the conference together with Sasia.

"Jeremy is a well-known solar advocate and an expert in his field. His influence has already changed the role solar energy will play in alleviating the world's energy transition. He will speak about 'Why solar is now interesting for the energy-advantaged countries in the Mena region', elaborating on how Saudi Arabia can become a solar energy leader in the region and power the growth of the Saudi Arabian economy."

"The global solar energy market is growing rapidly and expected to double again in the coming five years. We are no longer talking about a local niche market, but a 90-plus billion dollar global business. As with oil, Saudi Arabia is blessed with the best resources to explore the enormous industrial and business opportunities and become a global leader in solar energy."

The keynote speakers and others will discuss these opportunities at the conference Desert Solar in Saudi Arabia.

"With the cost of solar systems coming down because of economies of scale in production and installation, solar energy applications will become competitive in more and more markets. This development won't stop,” Koot said.

“Even the rather conservative International Energy Agency has forecasted that new solar installations until 2035 will represent investments of more than $1 trillion. I would call that an interesting business opportunity," he concluded. – TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Saudi Arabia | Solar Energy |

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