Global energy event, Middle East Energy’s inaugural virtual focus week will be conducted concentrating on renewable and clean energy themes, on May 17th, 2021.
According to research from UK-based Informa Markets, 83 gigawatts (GW) of renewable and clean energy potential, primarily solar and wind power, is planned across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region over the next 20 years, with more than $15 billion in solar power projects expected to become operational by 2026.
The figures were highlighted as the Middle East is poised to become a market leader in renewable and clean energy as a result of well-designed auctions, favorable funding conditions, and decreasing technology costs, all of which are leading to the mainstreaming of renewables.
Ms. Claudia Konieczna, Exhibition Director, Middle East Energy remarked that “we expect renewable and clean energy to account for 34 percent of total power sector investments across the MENA region in the next five years. Naturally, with the demand for new power capacity increasing in the region, one of the hot topics of discussion is renewable and clean energy and how countries are advancing initiatives in this sector. Creating dialogue on this subject is paramount to supporting Middle East Energy’s attendees in all future decision-making processes.”
Due to a strong pipeline of technologies, the UAE remains a leader in the GCC in terms of the energy transition. The 2GW Al Dhafra solar power project in Abu Dhabi, which will eventually power 160,000 homes, and the 1.5GW PV3 project, also in the capital, are among them.
The fourth and fifth phases of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (MBR) solar facility are currently under construction in Dubai. When fully operational in 2030, the MBR plant will be the world’s largest single-site solar installation, with a projected total capacity of 5GW. To put those numbers in perspective, 1 GW equals 3.125 million photovoltaic panels.
The importance of the renewables and clean sector, and the anticipated growth, was recently underscored in the report “COVID-19 Impact on Renewable Energy Market Global Forecast to 2021”. According to the findings, revenue produced from renewable and clean energy is expected to increase by 22 percent from $184 billion in 2020 to $225 billion in 2021.
“In line with these findings, we have developed a conference program which provides the opportunity to discuss, debate, and learn more about the impact renewable and clean energy will have on the sector as part of our virtual three-day conference,” Ms. Konieczna added.
Throughout the three-day virtual Renewable and Clean Energy sector week, which runs from May 17 to 19, there will be a variety of technical talks, industry briefings, case studies, product presentations, and panel discussions.
Mr. Ian Williamson, Chief Project Delivery Officer, Red Sea Utilities pointed out that “we will be able to evidence that tourist destinations, even at this scale, can be 100 percent powered by renewable energy. Eventually, Nations will have their energy grids powered from renewables and nuclear, but in the meantime, we can achieve 100 percent renewable energy for The Red Sea project while staying ‘off grid.”
Renewable and Clean Energy, Transmission and Distribution, Critical and Backup Power, and Energy Use and Management are among the topics covered during the focused sector week, which runs from May 17 to June 9, 2021.
