Credit: First Solar

The Emirate of Dubai set a new world record for the cost of solar power on May 1, 2016 with the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) receiving bids for the 800 MW Sheikh Maktoum Solar Park Phase III as low as 3.00 U.S. cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh).

Dubai has now firmly established itself as the forerunner of solar energy in the Gulf region. As part of its program to reach energy diversification goals by 2030, Dubai launched the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in 2012. The park is located on 40 square kilometers of land south of Dubai city and is planned to eventually host 5 GW of solar projects. In 2013, a 13 MW PV power plant was commissioned as phase I of the project. In 2014, DEWA tendered a 100 MW PV power plant on an IPP basis as phase II, with stunning results at the time. Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power bid a low tariff of 5.98 cents/kWh, already lower than DEWA’s cost of gas-fired power plants.

Source (Apricum Group, “Dubai Shatters all Records for Cost of Solar with Earth’s Largest Solar Power Plant”, 02.05.2016)