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Welcome to the MENA Solar Brief Newsletter -
April 7, 2013 - Issue 1304
Serving the solar energy market in the GCC / MENA region.
* SASIA in the News
* ESIA in the News
* Regional & Global Solar News
* Project Leads & Updates
* Solar Technology Focus
* Solar Investing & Project Finance
* Conferences & Exhibition
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SASIA in the News:
News, job postings, upcoming events, solar reports and more.
Event: Saudi Sustainable Energy SymposiumApril 23 - 24 Ritz-Carlton , Riyadh  Value Localization Series aims at creating a common understanding between all stakeholders including government entities, private sector organizations, local companies, international players, original equipment manufacturers, and potential investors concerning the development of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's sustainable energy program.  SASIA Networking Reception - April 23rd - 6:00 - 9:00 @ The Globe, atop the Al Faisaliah Hotel Tower . Please join us for an evening networking event prior to K.A.CARE Renewable Symposium. Click here to register. Watch the Riyadh sunset . sponsored by: SkyPower Global  June 19 -21 Munich 2013
SASIA organizes Saudi Delegation VIP Tour - click here for details Intersolar Matchmaking Service - Let EuPD & SASIA organize meetings for your company. Setup private meetings with companies such as Meyer Burger, Activ Solar- Contact info@saudi-sia.com  
Save the Date: Tuesday, September 10, 2013
SASIA Conference & Workshop - Sheraton Olaya, Riyadh. "Technical elements of the K.A.CARE CPP and solar energy best practices for Saudi Arabia". A follow-up event to the Feb. 2013 JF4Solar Riyadh. - Discuss barriers and opportunities for institutional financing and investment strategies for the solar PV and thermal energy program in Saudi Arabia
- Review innovative financing and investment tools for solar energy development
- Review strategies and action plans to facilitate the localization of solar PV and solar thermal value chain components, as well as necessary engineering, legal and professional services
- Discuss best practices and preliminary action plans for improved solar workforce training and development in Saudi Arabia, including higher education programs and certificate education programs
- Discuss the barriers, opportunities and potential action plans for solar manufacturing plants (components and systems outlined in the CPP) in Saudi Arabia
- Share institutional and policy experiences that support the Saudi solar PV and solar thermal energy program.
Attendees comments from previous SASIA event: "Thanks a lot for the event you arranged last week; it was a great pleasure to attend and to know that really there are people, future partners, planning to go green in Saudi Arabia." - "I believe the event was successful and would trigger business activities between your clients and Saudi Arabian companies. SASIA 2013 - Membership Application and SASIA Brochure  Members include: SunPower , SMA , Canadian Solar Middle East, SkyPower Global, TSMC, ERADA Advanced Projects Co. Ltd. , Soitec Solar, First Solar, Hilti, Activ Solar, Air Liquide and Shoals Technologies Group. |
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ESIA in the News:
 News, job postings, upcoming events, solar reports and more. - WETEX - ESIA will be participating in the Dubai WETEX Exhibition which takes place on April 15-17 at the World Trade Centre. All members are invited to come visit us at stand no. V 15, in Hall Number 2.
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ESIA Panel Event - Dubai Global Energy Forum - On 15 April, ESIA will host the solar portion of the Dubai Global Energy Forum to be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre. Presentations will be delivered by key individuals from leading organisations, including DEWA, Masdar, SolarReserve, and Alstom Solar. To register, please click here
- ESIA Breakfast Briefing - Doing Business in Saudi Arabia. On 30 April, ESIA will host a breakfast briefing to provide insight on the realities of doing solar business in Saudi Arabia. The event will be held at The Fairmont Hotel in Dubai from 8:30am to 10:30am.
- ESIA Networking Cocktail Reception - On 14 May, ESIA will host a networking cocktail reception on the sidelines of the MENASOL conference to be held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, Dubai.
For more information contact:
Sarah Fitzgerald
sarah@emiratessolar.com
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Solar Energy News Summary:
Top Stories
* Saudi Arabia: Saudi takes the long view on energy Ali Al Naimi, the Saudi oil minister, yesterday said the increased reliance on unconventional energy sources did not threaten his country's role as the world's biggest oil exporter because demand was also increasing.
* Saudi Arabia: Makkah solar streetlight project gets $794.6m bid. The offer was for a 25-year operation period for the lighting system, while another consortium led by ACWA Power are said to have bid $344m to operate the project for 11 years. The two consortia have been shortlisted from a total of 20 companies that submitted their proposals for the project earlier this year.
* UAE: Clean energy expert urges Middle East to adopt cleaner sources of power
. Without a greater effort to adopt solar power and other clean energy sources many Middle East nations face trouble.The man who once-led Richard Branson's efforts to combat climate change yesterday criticised the Middle East's modest adoption of solar power... * UAE: Masdar will not stop at Shams 1. Spread across 2.5 kilometres in the desert, the 100 MW grid-connected Shams 1 was unveiled on a very sunny afternoon near Madinat Zayed, in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi
* Qatar - Siemens signs MoU with Qatar's GreenGulf.
Siemens has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Qatar-based GreenGulf that will see the pair cooperate on the development of projects in energy efficiency and urban transport. The firms have said they will look at opportunities and "possible pilot projects" in areas including energy-efficient district cooling and energy optimisation and supply management. * Jordan - Renewable Energy opportunities in Jordan. Jordan is an up and coming market for renewable energy with vast renewable energy opportunities. Owing to the fact Jordan is highly dependent on imported energy sources, with over 90% of its energy resources currently imported, the Jordanian Government is keen to encourage renewable energy projects with both local and international developers.
* Jordan - Jordan to authorise two renewable energy projects.
The two projects, slated to cost $312 million, are among a package of projects that seek to diversify Jordan's energy sources, spread them throughout its provinces and reduce production costs while increasing the amount of power generated to 1,000 megawatts annually, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Alaa al-Batayneh said in a press conference on February 20th.
IT-DREPS is a multi-disciplinary conference aiming to explore the potentials of applying Information Technology (IT) in analyzing, modeling, simulation, developing, evaluating, monitoring, and control Renewable Energy Processes and Systems (DREPS).
* Jordan - Lights go out in Jordan as energy crisis bites. But the disruption has created an impetus for Jordan to invest in renewable energy projects which, while they will not end the crisis in the short term, appear increasingly feasible.
* Morocco - Webinar: Maghreb Webinar: Delivering Renewable Energy Across the Maghreb. Tuesday 23 April 2013 at 3pm-4pm (Rabat time). Click here to register.
Held ahead of the Maghreb Renewable Energy Congress (21-22 May, Rabat, Morocco) the webinar is completely free and will bring together leading renewable energy experts to discuss current projects and governmental policy in North Africa.
* Turkey - Turkey Moves Ahead in Appropriate Application of PV. The Turkish PV market is being driven by the competitive cost of PV electricity more than by other incentives. PV installations within Turkey are being realized according to the terms of February 2012 legislation exempting production license requirements for installations less than 500 kW, a limit soon to be raised to 1 MW. * MENA Region - Middle East and Africa Photovoltaic Demand to Reach 1 Gigawatt in 2013, Reports NPD Solarbuzz. New solar photovoltaic (PV) demand from the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region is forecast to reach 1 gigawatt (GW) in 2013, based on findings from the new NPD Solarbuzz Middle East and Africa PV Market Report. This represents an increase of 625% Y/Y from 136 MW in 2012. * Global - What's going on with Chinese solar? The bankruptcy of Chinese solar energy company Suntech Wuxi is being depicted in the media as a sign of chaos in the solar industry.
The industry is said to be suffering from disastrous price falls created by over-capacity, and harmed by the US imposition of tariffs. Meanwhile the Chinese central planners have sent out confusing signals, winding back subsidies at the same time as they are ramping up feed-in tariffs.
Research - Solar panels now make more electricity than they use. And by 2020, the solar industry will have completely "paid back" the energy it took to produce the world's panels. The study looked at what went into building and installing solar panels all over the world, including everything from home installations to solar farms, says Michael Dale, a climate and energy researcher at Stanford University, in a Stanford-produced video.
Full analysis:
Solar Investing & Project Finance - 5 Middle East Solar Markets to Watch. Solar markets in the Middle East are poised for massive growth, but evaluating new solar market opportunities can be an extremely difficult challenge. Market potential often depends on a number of complicated factors and assumptions that are either hard to quantify or difficult to compare side by side for different regions.
Technology Focus -
The Solar Island: A groundbreaking CSP technology? Having proven the solar island concept in the UAE in 2009, Zurich-based Novaton, which acquired the intellectual property of Nolaris in February, is now taking the patented concept worldwide.The technology promises a zero-shadowing effect and at least 30% less land space than typically required for CSP plants.
Solar Project of the Month - Saudi Aramco HQ, North Park Solar Carpark, 
DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia, Belectric and Sun & Life built the largest solar power plant of Saudi Arabia in Dhahran. The 10 Megawatts Photovoltaic Carport System is situated at the recently built North Park offices of Saudi Aramco in Dhahran and will cover all of the 4,500 parking spaces. More than 120,000 CIS (Copper Indium Selenide) photovoltaic modules were installed, supplied by the Japanese Thin Film Leader Solar Frontier (Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K.). Belectric was awarded the project by the Saudi Arabia based company Al Yamama, the project principal, building Saudi Aramco's Northpark complex including offices and the carpark.
Project profile - click here
Upcoming Solar Energy Events, Exhibitions & Conferences - 2013 Calendar:
May 21-22 Solar Maghreb Renewable Energy Congress, Rabat, Morocco
May 29-31 IT-DREPS 2013, Amman, Jordan
June 2-4, MEED's Kuwait Energy & Efficiency, Kuwait City, Kuwait
July 8-11 Intersolar North America, San Francisco, California
July 24-26 PV Japan 2013, Tokyo, Japan
September 3-5 GulfSol 2013, Dubai , UAESeptember 9-11 Arabian Water & Power Forum, Dubai, UAE September 24 SASIA - JF4Solar Conference and Networking, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Featured Event: 
Venue : Al Bustan Palace, Muscat, Oman Why Oman?
Oman has total proven reserves of 5.5 billion barrels of oil and comprise of disparate clusters of smaller fields. This geological composition makes production costs some of the highest in the region. Oman has thus far implemented a successful renewable energy program to reverse the decline in production experienced for most of the past decade, deploying some of the most sophisticated methods of enhanced oil extraction. With the depreciating gas reserves, harnessing solar power to run the oil and gas infrastructure and applications has been top priority for the industry. Backed by a strong political will and strive to be the leader in harnessing solar power for oil and gas applications makes Oman a haven for companies involved in solar EOR, thermal heavy oil, solar equipment, solar EPC, CSP technology companies and others.
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MENA Solar Brief
Editor: Browning Rockwell
Email: browningr@horizoninc.com
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