Nikita Jayswal and Brian Warshay Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi, UAE Electricity Consumption in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) The UAE has only recently begun to consider renewable energy as part of its energy portfolio. In fact, in January of 2009, Abu Dhabi (the largest of the seven emirates in the UAE) announced a goal to reach 7 percent of its power from renewable energy by 2020. In an effort to meet this goal, Abu Dhabi has planned to invest USD $22 billion in the Masdar Initiative, a renewable energy and innovation technology cluster and city that includes the Masdar Institute. In June of 2009, Masdar announced the connection of its 10 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant to the Abu Dhabi grid, expected to generate 17,500 MWh per year of renewable energy. Masdar City is expected to generate most or all of its own energy while Abu Dhabi continues to invest in solar renewable energy. By the end of 2012, Abu Dhabi expects its 100 MW concentrated solar power (CSP) plant, the USD $600 million Shams 1, to be completed. This facility is planned to be expanded to 2000 MW in the future. The UAE does not have many renewable resources. There is little water to speak of, minimal wind, negligible biomass, and an overabundance of oil. Fortunately, there is plenty of sunlight. However, even the UAE’s solar resources are not optimal due to the high year-round humidity and suspended dust particles, which scatter the incoming solar radiation, reducing the operating efficiency of PV and CSP facilities in the region, while increasing operational costs due to the necessity of keeping the panels clean. The country currently operates nearly 100 percent on natural gas and minimally on oil and other sources for its electricity. Due to Abu Dhabi’s high oil refining and power generation requirements, water desalination plants are collocated with power plants and refineries to take advantage of low-grade waste heat from those industries. Overall, much of the UAE’s natural gas that is used for electricity generation is piped in from Qatar. In order for Abu Dhabi and the UAE to meet their continued growth requirements and energy needs they will not only need to invest in new solar power generating capacity, but must enforce strict building codes, reduce subsidies on electricity, water, and gasoline, and greatly enhance energy efficiency and incentivize more sustainable behavior from its residents. In a country with temperatures exceeding 40ºC for most parts of the year, air conditioning loads are extreme and much of this energy consumption is poorly managed, partly because electricity is subsidized to be remarkably cheap (from USD $0.054$0.09/kWh). The developments of Masdar City, the Shams 1 Power Plant, and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) being located in Masdar City will encourage Abu Dhabi to follow through with its commitments to greening its power supply and developing more sustainably than it has over the last several decades.
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GWh 0 0 79,707.24
17.50 0 0 0 0 79,724.74
type of energy source Coal Nuclear power
0.0% 0.0%
Oil (all types)/ Natural gas
100.0%
Solar (all types)
0.022%
Water power (all types) Wind (on- and offshore) Biomass Geothermal energy
0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
SUM
100.0%
(10,110 MW of electricity generating capacity, multiplied by 8760 hrs/yr x 90% availability) http://www.pvtech.org/news/_a/masdar_citys_10mw_solar_pv_power_plant_activated/
Electrical power supply of the UAE [GWh] Coal 17.50 , 0.022%
79,707.24 , 99.978%
Nuclear power Oil (all types)/ Natural gas Solar (all types) Water power (all types) Wind (on- and offshore) Biomass Geothermal energy
http://www.zawya.com/project s/project.cfm/pid24010801125 6/Masdar%20Shams 1 info: %20Shams%201%20Concent rating%20Solar%20Power%2 0(CSP)%20Plant?cc