Saudi Arabia has signed Power Purchase Agreements for seven new solar power projects in various regions in the country that will power more than 600,000 households, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said Thursday.
The projects will have more than 3,600 megawatt capacity, in addition to the Sakaka solar and Dumat al-Jandal wind projects.
"These projects, along with other renewable energy projects, which are being developed across the Kingdom, constitute essential elements of our plans that seek to optimize the energy mix used to produce electricity," the Crown Prince said.
They are the result of Saudi King Salman’s directives and the Kingdom’s aim to develop its economy, in accordance with Vision 2030’s renewable energy initiatives.
The Crown Prince said that by 2030 the aim was for gas and renewables to each account for a 50% share of the Kingdom's energy mix to produce electricity. And that this would substitute about 1 million barrel of oil equivalent of liquid fuels.
Saudi Arabia aims “to nationalize the renewable energy sector, promote the local content, and enable the manufacturing of the components of solar and wind energy production locally, allowing the Kingdom, within the next ten years, to become a global hub for conventional energy, renewable energy and their technologies,” he said.
“We are well aware of our share of responsibility in advancing the fight against climate change. In continuation of our leading role in the stability of the energy markets, we will forge ahead to play the same role to lead in the area of renewable energy,” he added.
