JEDDAH: Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) and Showa Shell Sekiyu have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a 500kW PV plant in Farasan Island, Saudi Arabia. The pilot system, located at the Farasan Diesel Power Generation Plant of SEC, will be the first remotely installed plant in the Kingdom to be grid connected when it comes online in July. Annual electrical output is estimated at 864,000kWh. Project installation on the site was carried out by Solar Frontier, a subsidiary of Showa Shell Sekiyu, using its CIS technology, which is ideally suited to the arid climes of Farasan Island. Solar Frontier will also provide year-round technical support through its newly established Saudi Arabia Office, although primary responsibility for operation and maintenance rests with SEC. "The completion of this pilot plant paves the way for intensive collaboration on solar initiatives between Showa Shell Sekiyu, Solar Frontier, and leaders in both Saudi Arabian and Japanese government and industry," Solar Frontier's senior vice president of global marketing and power generation, Atsuhiko Hirano, said. "Our soon-to-be established office in Saudi Arabia will work closely with SEC as the plant comes on line and will serve as our hub for expanding development projects in Saudi Arabia going forward." The solar array will eliminate the need for 28,000 barrels of diesel over its lifetime, according to Solar Frontier, which is a subsidiary of Showa Shell Sekiyu. Diesel is now shipped to Farasan to generate power for the popular diving spot. "The sunlight that's available in the region is one of the highest around the world," Hirano added. "The electricity demand matches very well with solar power." Saudi Arabia has 52 gigawatts of installed capacity and will need to increase that to 120gw in the next two decades if it is to meet projected demand, Dr Abdullah Al-Shehri, the governor of the Electricity & Co-Generation Regulatory Authority, said. "We have a good level of solar radiation in the country, and we think it can contribute not only to producing solar energy but also clipping the peak load," he added.
