Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid

:: The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has announced the winning tender for the fourth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site concentrated solar power project in the world.

DEWA awarded the tender to a consortium of Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power and China’s Shanghai Electric, which bid the lowest price at 7.3 US cents per kilowatt-hour, the lowest ever for a solar energy plant.

The Dh14.2 billion project would be commissioned in stages, starting from the fourth quarter of 2020. The 700-megawatt extension would have the world’s tallest solar tower, measuring 260 meters.

“The implementation of the world’s largest concentrated solar energy project underlines the UAE’s leadership on the world stage in producing clean and renewable energy and reinforces our position at the forefront of the most advanced countries in this field,” said Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the Ruler of Dubai, said in a statement.

“We are implementing projects that translate the overall development directions in our country and support the ambitious goals that we set for the future and started implementing it today.”

Dubai aims to increase the share of clean energy to its total power production to 7 percent by 2020, further increasing it to 25 percent by 2030 and 75 percent by 2050.

“Our focus on renewable energy generation has led to a drop in prices worldwide and has lowered the price of solar power bids in Europe and the Middle East. This was evident today when we received the lowest CSP project cost in the world,” said Saeed Mohammed Al-Tayer, the chief executive of DEWA.

Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park