The UAE has set high goals for renewable energy. The Middle-Eastern nation wants to reach a 50 percent renewable energy mix in its overall energy balance by 2050 as part of its Energy Strategy 2050. The contributions from sun and wind are included in this.
It might seem weird to use wind in such a bright place, but some sections of the oil-rich country, particularly coastal ones, have ideal wind conditions that make them appropriate for the generation of wind energy. The country’s geographical position gives access to dependable and constant breezes in particular places.
With the launch of a historic 103.5 megawatt (MW) wind power project, managed by Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar, the nation is attempting to take advantage of them. This project exhibits the most contemporary innovation and technology to capture low wind speeds at utility scale.
Powering 23,000 Houses A Year
The new construction will power over 23,000 UAE households a year and save over 120,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, which is comparable to the elimination of over 26,000 automobiles off the road yearly.
Wind power was traditionally impractical in the UAE due to its slow wind speeds. However, developments in renewable energy and climate technology have finally made it plausible. Due to bigger turbine sizes, decreasing hardware prices, and the discovery of a rare meteorological phenomenon that generates high winds at night, this technology has become scaleable and financially viable.
Since this new discovery, the UAE has never introduced utility-scale wind power to its energy mix, wind power may now act as a complement to the UAE’s present solar power output, which occurs throughout the day.
A Cause For National Celebration
The UAE Wind Program is a great source of national pride and a demonstration of Masdar’s ability to pioneer and implement innovations in wind and renewable energy technologies, according to H.E. Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, COP28 President-Designate, and Chairman of Masdar. However, more than 20 years ago, before Masdar was established, our founding father, His Highness Sheikh Zayed, who had a genuine concern for the environment, authorized the construction of a wind turbine on Sir Bani Yas Island. Masdar, the UAE’s leading provider of renewable energy, carries on this tradition by fostering the country’s ambition to become a global pioneer in sustainability and climate action as it unleashes the new potential of wind energy. To achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, the global capacity for renewable energy must treble by 2030.
The regulatory structure established in the UAE to encourage renewable energy projects, particularly wind power, has enabled all of these developments. Incentives, feed-in tariffs, and power purchase agreements are included in this framework to entice investors and promote the development of sustainable energy projects.
Masdar has lofty goals to reach at least 100 GW of total renewable energy capacity by 2030 as part of these new agreements. It appears that the company will succeed in its objectives.