H.E. Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer with the delegation

Dubai, UAE: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has announced that a delegation comprising H.E. Suhail Mohammad Faraj Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and H.E. Matar Hamed Al Neyadi, Undersecretary for the Ministry of Energy, visited the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and the control-centre compound at Warsan, and they were received by H.E. Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA, H.E. Mohammad Abdullah Abunayyan, Chairman of ACWA Power, Waleed Salman, Executive Vice President of Strategy & Business Development, Hussain Lootah, Executive Vice President of Transmission Power at DEWA and Dr Yousef Al Akraf, Executive Vice President of Business Support and Human Resources at DEWA.

The announcement said that the delegation visited the solar park, construction sites for the R&D centres and the Innovation Centre.

Managed by DEWA, the park, the announcement claimed, is the largest single-site project to generate electricity from solar energy in the world, based on an independent power producer (IPP) model. Giving details of the project, the company said that the first phase of the project of 13 megawatt (MW) became operational in October 2013 and the 200MW second phase will become operational in April 2017. The solar park, the company highlighted, will produce 1,000MW by 2020 and 5,000MW by 2030, while helping reduce 6.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually.

The delegation, the company revealed, also paid a visit to the main 400/132kV substation at the solar park, worth AED 275 million, which has a conversion capacity of 1,515 megavolt amperes (MVA), in addition to the solar-powered water pumping and desalination station that uses photovoltaic solar panels to desalinate water with Reverse Osmosis (RO) technology. The company added that the station has a production capacity of 50 cubic metres a day, which provides R&D establishments in the park with high-quality drinking water.

The Innovation Centre comprising a group of R&D centres, the utility informed, is due for completion by 2018 and is valued at AED 500 million. Featuring two control centres, the company explained that the first controls power generation, transmission, and distribution to monitor the 400kV and 132kV networks, and also manages power generation in coordination with Jebel Ali Power Station; while the second centre monitors and manages the networks to maintain continuous improvement.

DEWA explained that the solar testing centre studies, evaluates and tests the long-term stability and reliability of 30 types of photovoltaic panels, using the most sophisticated and accurate equipment by applying the highest standards and techniques. The solar cells and panels, it added, are also tested in different weather conditions and in the surrounding environment, in both open spaces and when integrated into buildings.

The Minister of Energy, the company said, noted the solar park’s contribution to achieving the long-term national Green Economy for Sustainable Development initiative, launched by H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Speaking on this occasion, Al Tayer said: “Our wise leadership is pursuing the transformation towards clean and renewable energy to achieve a vision that recognises their significance in achieving a balance between development and sustainability. This will help protect the rights of future generations to live in a clean, healthy, and safe environment.”