Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Energy has commenced a comprehensive geographical survey to pinpoint prime sites for developing renewable energy projects throughout the country.
Announced this week, the initiative involves the installation of 1,200 stations by Saudi companies to measure solar and wind energy metrics across more than 850,000 square kilometres (328,187 sq miles) of Saudi Arabia's territory. Energy Minister AbdulAziz bin Salman highlighted that this area is comparable to the combined land areas of countries like Germany and Spain, excluding populated zones, sand dunes, and restricted airspace.
The solar energy measurement stations will be equipped with ground-level sensors to monitor various parameters including direct normal irradiance (DNI), global horizontal irradiance (GHI), diffuse horizontal irradiance (DHI), as well as environmental factors such as dust deposition rates, albedo, temperature, rainfall, humidity, and atmospheric pressure.
Simultaneously, wind energy measurement stations will operate at heights up to 120 metres to record wind speed, direction, temperature, pressure, and humidity.
The survey aims to expedite the development of new solar and wind projects across Saudi Arabia by reducing the typical 18 to 24 months required for comprehensive data collection.
Saudi Arabia has set ambitious renewable energy targets, including achieving a 50% share of renewables in its power mix by 2030. Recent initiatives include the Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) announcing qualified bidders for 3.7 GW of solar projects and ACWA Power signing power purchase agreements (PPAs) for 5.5 GW of solar projects, with plans for additional capacity in the coming years.
Starting in 2024, Saudi Arabia plans to annually tender new renewable energy projects totaling 20 GW capacity, with a long-term target ranging from 100 GW to 130 GW by the end of the decade, contingent on electricity demand growth, according to the energy minister.
