The world's single-largest concentrated solar plant opened this weekend in Abu Dhabi, the capital and most oil-rich city of the United Arab Emirates.
Named Shams 1, the 100-megawatt plant will serve 20,000 homes and cost approximately $600 million to construct. But why build it?
According to Bloomberg, it is part of a plan to reduce local oil consumption, so that more can be exported.The plant is to comprise seven percent of Abu Dhabi's renewable energy sources.
"From precious hydrocarbon exports to sophisticated renewable energy systems, we are balancing the energy mix and diversifying our economy — moving toward a more sustainable future," head of Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co. Sultan Ahmed al Jaber said in a statement.
The two and a half kilometer Shams 1 plant works by generating electricity from over 700 rows of reflective troughs. Mirrors on the troughs reflect light onto a tube that carries synthetic oil, which is then converted into steam that turns a conventional electricity-generating turbine. An air-cooling method will condense steam, conserving water.
The plant does, however, require some natural gas in order to "superheat" the fluid. Brusher trucks will also be needed to clean sand off of the mirrors.
The Shams 1 project was developed through a joint venture between Masdar, Abengoa Solar of Spain and French energy company Total. The plant took three years to build.
The United Arab Emirates is not the only country in the Middle East to tap into the promising solar industry in that area. Saudi Arabia is planning to derive one third of its electricity from solar power over the course of the next 20 years.
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi is hoping that Shams 1 will save 175,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year, an objective akin to taking 15,000 cars off the road. Several additional plants are also being considered in the country.
