Dubai's mega solar park gets 200MW capacity boost

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has commissioned the 200MW second unit of the parabolic basin complex in the fourth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.

This phase uses the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model with investments of up to AED 15.78 billion.

It is set to provide clean energy for approximately 320,000 residences and reduce carbon emissions by 1.6 million tonnes annually.

The 950MW 4th phase is the largest single-site project in the world that combines Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) and photovoltaic technologies.

"Commissioning the 200MW second unit of the parabolic basin complex in the fourth phase increased the solar park’s production capacity to 2,627MW, and DEWA’s total production capacity to 15,117MW," said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA.

"DEWA is implementing other energy storage projects, including the 250MW pumped-storage hydroelectric power plant in Hatta, with a storage capacity of 1,500 megawatt hours, and the Green Hydrogen project that produces and stores hydrogen using solar energy," added Al Tayer.

.@DEWAOfficial has commissioned the 200MW second unit of the parabolic basin complex in the fourth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. This phase uses the Independent Power Producer model with investments of up to AED 15.78 billion. It is set to provide clean… pic.twitter.com/AG6KjFlCuG

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) October 2, 2023

The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park is the largest single-site solar park in the world, with a planned total capacity of 5,000 MW by 2030.

DEWA and the ACWA Power-led consortium, established Noor Energy 1 as a project company to design, build, and operate the 4th phase of the park.

DEWA holds a 51 per cent stake in the company, ACWA Power holds 25 per cent, and the Chinese Silk Road Fund owns 24 per cent.

The 4th phase of the Solar Park uses three hybrid technologies to produce clean energy: 600MW from a parabolic basin complex (three units of 200MW each), 100MW from the world’s tallest solar power tower at 262.44 metres (based on Molten Salt technology), and 250MW from photovoltaic solar panels.

So far, 717MW have been commissioned from this phase, which will have the largest thermal storage capacity in the world of 15 hours, allowing for solar energy availability around the clock.

The 4th phase included the installation of more than 790,000 photovoltaic solar panels and more than 63,600 parabolic trough collectors (PT). The project integrates 70,000 mirrors (heliostats) that track the sun’s movement.