The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will become the next Germany in the renewable energy space, according to Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman. He said that the Kingdom is planning to replace petroleum with solar and gas to generate energy. He said, “We will be another Germany when it comes to renewables. We will be pioneering.”
However, analytics company Globaldata has reported that the Kingdom had failed to commission any of the 1,040 MW of solar expected last year under its National Renewable Energy Programme.
Recently, Uzbekistan’s Energy Ministry said in a press release that Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia are planning three major power projects that will boost the use of clean and renewable energy in the Central Asian country.
In this regard, ACWA Power Chairman Mohammad Abunayyan told the media, “Through the addition of new renewable energy capacity, exploration of innovative technologies and the advancement of cleaner, more efficient and cost-competitive gas power, ACWA Power is expanding its presence in Uzbekistan, a high growth market, leveraging our global expertise and technical know-how to create long-term and sustainable value for the country’s local communities.”
According to reports published last year, Saudi Arabia is preparing to invest more than $30 billion in the kingdom’s renewable energy sector by 2025 in order to diversify the energy mix. The planned investment in renewable energy is also a part of Saudi Arabia’s plan to boost its economic diversification programme. Over the years, Saudi Arabia has relied heavily on crude oil to fuel its electricity needs.