QATAR PROGRESSES TO 800 MW SOLAR POWER PLANT

Qatar has always set examples of a progressive nation and this time the focus is Solar Energy. The country will be building 800 MW solar power plant in an area of 10 sq km. For this purpose Qatar and France’s Total along with Japan’s Marubeni have signed an agreement. According to this agreement the solar power project will have a capacity of 800 MW. This is equivalent to 10 per cent of the country’s present electricity demand.

The signing ceremony to build Al Kharsaah Large Scale Solar PV Power plant was attended by The Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani and H E Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Minister of State for Energy Affairs and President and CEO of Qatar Petroleum. It will also establish the power company and include power purchase from this plant. The ceremony was held at Doha Sheraton Hotel on Sunday.

Source : metender.com 

Listed below are important pointers of this progressive Solar Power project:

1. Estimated cost of the power plant is 1.7 Billion QAR which is equal to 467 million Dollars.

2. It will be constructed at Al Kharsaah area west of Doha in a total area of 10 sq kilometer.

3. 60% of the stakes will be held by Siraj Energy, a Qatar enterprise jointly owned by Qatar Petroleum and Qatar Electricity and Water Company.

4. Rest of the 40% shall be owned by Total and Marubeni.

5. This project has a BOOT model where after a term of 25 years the ownership shall shift to Kahramaa.

6. The project will operate at its full capacity by the first quarter of 2022.

In conclusion, this is also a big step in making Qatar a more environment friendly nation. The country is the largest supplier of Liquified Natural Gas.  Now, Qatar wants to work on reducing their carbon emission and this is a perfect way to incorporate the goal of sustainability.

Source : iloveqatar.net