Since the beginning of this year, DEWA has added 800MW of clean energy production capacity to its energy mix. This addition came mainly from the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park’s sixth phase. Clean energy now constitutes around 21.5 percent of DEWA’s total energy production capacity.
Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, announced that the total production capacity of the solar park has increased to 3,860 megawatts (MW), using photovoltaic (PV) solar panels and concentrated solar power (CSP) technologies.
“Our strategies and action plans are inspired by the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to accelerate the transition towards a sustainable green economy and enhance Dubai’s position as a leading global hub for clean and renewable energy,” stated Al Tayer.
Solar park’s production capacity to reach 7,260MW by 2030
The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park is a key project in achieving the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050, which aim to provide 100 percent of the emirate’s energy production capacity from clean sources by 2050.
By 2030, the solar park’s production capacity will reach 7,260MW, with clean energy making up 34 percent of DEWA’s energy mix. This will reduce approximately eight million tons of carbon emissions annually.
The first phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, with a capacity of 13MW using PV solar panels, was commissioned in October 2013. In March 2017, the second phase, with a capacity of 200MW, was inaugurated. It also uses PV technology and was the first solar energy project of its kind in the region based on the independent power producer (IPP) model.
In November 2020, DEWA also inaugurated the third phase of the solar park, with a capacity of 800MW. This phase, also using PV technology, was the first in the Middle East and North Africa to use single-axis solar tracking to enhance energy generation.
Seventh phase of park to have a capacity of 1,600MW
In December 2023, DEWA inaugurated the fourth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, with a total capacity of 950MW, combining CSP and PV panels. It uses three hybrid technologies to produce clean energy: 600MW from a parabolic basin complex, 100MW from a solar power tower and 250MW from PV solar panels.
In June 2023, the fifth phase, with a capacity of 900MW, was inaugurated using photovoltaic panels. DEWA is currently working to complete the sixth phase of the solar park, with a capacity of 1,800MW using PV panels.
DEWA has also invited international developers to participate in the implementation of the seventh phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which will have a capacity of 1,600MW. This phase, which is expandable to 2,000MW, will utilize PV solar panels and a battery energy storage system with a capacity of 1,000MW for six hours, providing a total storage capacity of 6,000 megawatt-hours.
This will make it one of the world’s largest solar-plus-storage projects. DEWA will implement this phase under the IPP model.
