Even Saudi Arabia is switching to solar energy.

Photo: Mohammed Al-Deghaishim

In Saudi Arabia, up to 24% of all proven oil reserves in the world are located. Oil provides 90% of exports and 75% of budget revenues. It would seem, why should the country develop solar energy?

Saudi Arabia clearly does not fit into the stereotype of the oil superpower. This is hard to believe, but the Wahhabi kingdom wants to come out on top in the world in terms of solar power generation. About the plans of the Saudis - in the report of the magazine The Atlantic .

The construction of a large solar panel production plant is starting near Riyadh. On the coast of the Persian Gulf is planned to build a plant for the production of a large number of polysilicon, which is necessary for the manufacture of panels. And next year, the two state-owned companies that control the energy sector, the Saudi Aramco and the Saudi Electricity Company, will begin building ten solar power plants throughout the country. In the future, it is also planned to export solar panels.
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By the way, gasoline in Saudi Arabia sells for 13 cents per liter, and electricity for the population costs 1 cent per kWh - this is paradise for bitcoin farms. A lot of monstrous off-road vehicles ride along magnificent roads, no one on buildings thinks to make insulation, air conditioners all work around the clock (they account for 70% of all energy costs in the country, according to statistics for 2013).

For comparison, a private company Acwa Power International is ready to generate and sell solar energy in Saudi Arabia at a price of 5.84 cents per kilowatt hour. This is the cost plus profit. Apparently, it will be the lowest cost of solar energy in the world, but with government subsidies for oil-fired power plants, the price is still too high.

Electricity in Saudi Arabia is produced directly by burning oil, which is extremely inefficient: with 30 million people, the country ranks 6th in the world in oil consumption.

However, with such an abundance of cheap oil, this is just an energy paradise. With a production cost of about $ 4 per barrel, solar power plants may seem like a freak to someone. But the government believes that we need to move forward and think about the future.


Riyadh City Photo: Mohammed Al-Deghaishim

According to the logic of the government, in order to maintain the 1st place in the world in oil exports, they themselves need to switch to alternative energy sources. The fact is that the country burns 25% of the oil produced, and domestic consumption is growing at 7% per year. But the export of these volumes could make a lot of money.

Moreover, if consumption continues to grow at such a pace, the country will have to import oil in 2038 (calculations by the British company Chatham House). Having lost its oil revenues, the country will simply fall apart. The state can no longer provide social benefits for citizens who today do not even pay taxes.

Therefore, energy without oil is a matter of national security. In parallel with the solar stations, a contract was concluded with South Korea for the construction of two nuclear power plants.

In addition, the territory of Saudi Arabia is ideal for solar power plants. There are huge desert areas and almost the maximum intensity of solar radiation on Earth. You can make solar panels thousands of square kilometers. True, all this idyll spoil sandstorms.


Georg Eitelhuber, an engineer, is developing in Saudi Arabia the technology of automatic cleaning of solar batteries from dust (without using water): with brushes. Photo: Mohammed Al-Deghaishim

As before, by 2032, Saudi Arabia planned to receive 41 gigawatts of energy from the Sun, which should be enough to cover 20% of the needs. Now the dates have been moved to 2040. To implement the plan, you will have to reform the state energy system, but if there is no other way out, you will have to do it. Maybe someday Saudi Arabia will become a model for other countries of the world who want to stop using fossil fuels.