Dubai at the Forefront of Clean Energyby Aaditya Singh | 18-09-2017 01:12 |
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Friends, before I start I want to share with all of you a major transition in my life. An Indian by origin, and born in Dubai UAE, I have lived in UAE for the first thirteen years of my life. Early this month I have shifted to Austria, as my parents have got involved with a project here.
I am now studying in Mary Ward School in Krems (about an hour and a half away from Vienna). I am staying in a hostel and as of now, I will have proper data connections only on weekends. So please forgive any periods of silence, if I am not able to access the Forum, as often as I was doing during my holidays. Austria is a haven of nature- a country that can captivate our senses and I will describe it more in my future posts. Today however I want to share a great news. With my parents, for the weekend, as I connected to internet today and started to read the news from UAE, I was greeted by a very positive and optimistic article. Dubai has launched the world's largest concentrated solar power (CSP) project. As described on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concentrated_solar_power) "Concentrated solar power (also called concentrating solar power, concentrated solar thermal, and CSP) systems generate solar power by using mirrors or lenses to concentrate a large area of sunlight, or solar thermal energy, onto a small area. Electricity is generated when the concentrated light is converted to heat, which drives a heat engine (usually a steam turbine) connected to an electrical power generator or powers a thermo-chemical reaction. Heat storage in molten salts allows some solar thermal plants to continue to generate after sunset and adds value to such systems when compared to photo-voltaic panels." Coming back to the CSP Project in Dubai, more than the groundbreaking numbers and records and besides the unrelenting commitment of the government of UAE, the project highlights and celebrates the immense power of the sun- a resource that is renewable, free and abundant- a lifetime of cheap endless supply. Let me share some facts about the project: 1. Estimated Cost: AED 14.2 Billion 2. The Largest Single Site Project planned. 3. The Tallest Solar Tower planned in the World at 260 metres 4. The Plant will generate 700 megawatts of power when completed. 5. The Project guarantees to achieve the lowest cost price of energy with 7.3 US cents per kilowatt. 6. The Project will be implemented by DEWA (Dubai Electricity and Water Authority) 7. The Project relies on a AED 100 Billion fund to finance the plan. 8. The Project includes an allocation of AED 500 Million, for research, development, smart networks and energy efficiency. 9. The Project is a giant step towards 'Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050', by which date the emirate plants to have 75% of her power from green energy sources. 10. The construction contract has been awarded to a consortium including ACWA Power from Saudi Arabia and Harbin Electric from China. Please click on the links below to access the news reports from 'Gulf News' Dated 17 September 2017, for more information While the world clamors for the oil wealth in the Middle East region, I have always wondered that some day, the region will be able to recognise and harness the wealth of Sunshine that nature has bestowed upon the area. I look forward to see this project through till completion, and emerge as a pioneer of green energy in the neighboring region and the world. |
