'Oriental Nights' powered by Wind and Solar: Arabian World Is Pushing for Renewables
The world's running out of oil, there is no denial. However, the oil price has already been sinking for years - which is also linked to the success story of renewable energies. And even more and more oil-exporting countries from the Arab world are transforming their energy supply.
Wind has replaced the 'black gold' as energy source #1 in former oil state Texas. Now more and more countries from the Arab world are following, some of whom have so far made their money mainly with oil. The possibilities to secure their electricity supply by solar and wind energy have become more lucrative than further drilling. At the same time it seems possible to ensure that areas not connected to the infrastructure will be electrified.
Lately the Moroccan King Mohammed VI. received the 'Energy Efficiency Visionary Award'. In his speech of thanks, he emphasized: "The pressing challenge for our world today is not so much to confront the lack of energy resources as to mobilize the investment needed in this field. It is, therefore, necessary to build the energy infrastructure required and to develope alternative technologies." In addition to huge wind farms and solar power plants mainly installed in the desert regions of the country, solar panels will also be used on private house roofs in the future.
In small Jordan renewables have been booming for the past two to three years. Currently, the country has a capacity of 480 MW of renewables, including 295 MW of solar and 184 MW of wind. The share of renewables is expected to be 10 percent by 2020. Orders over 1,600 MW will be awarded by the end of the year. So far, it was necessary to import expensive oil from Saudi Arabia, which has among other things contributed to the country's chronic trade deficit.
Read the full article by Katrin Radtke via WindFair.
[Photo by Pieter Morlion | Flickr]
