Doha-based Innovations Unlimited ME, a renewable energy products and services provider, has installed the first photovoltaic solar panels in the QR20 billion ($5.4 billion) Msheireb Downtown Doha (MDD) project.

The roof-mounted photovoltaic modules will supply a portion of the electricity needs of the buildings within phase one of the landmark development.

The buildings within phase 1A are being installed with 2,072 photovoltaic panels and 37 inverters, feeding a total of 463.4 kilowatts at peak power of electricity and will feed directly into the electrical grid of the development, thus significantly reducing the buildings’ carbon emissions, said a statement.

Abdulla Hassan Al–Mehshadi, chief executive officer of Msheireb Properties, said: “Adopting advanced clean technology such as solar energy in addition to traditional methods of climate management is a hallmark of the Msheireb project which will have one of the largest concentrations of LEED-certified buildings in the world on completion.”

When MDD is complete, the project will comprise 5,200 solar panels across a total of 8,400 sq m of on-site energy production in the form of both electricity and hot water, said the statement.

Each year, the solar PV system will reduce total greenhouse gas emissions by 568 tonnes which is equivalent to 241,000 litres of gasoline consumed, it added. - TradeArabia News Service