Few places in the world have all the critical elements needed to create a profitable solar power market, but Saudi Arabia stands out as one of them. From vast deserts that can accommodate large installations and high solar resources that guarantee maximum energy yields, to adequate financial resources and a well-established construction industry - the Kingdom has it all.

"Saudi Arabia could easily be one of the largest solar markets in the world. The economics are clear; a pilot program has been completed, and deep policy research has been done," says Jigar Shah, founder of SunEdison and chief executive of the Carbon War Room.

Dr. Raed Bkayrat, vice president for Saudi Arabia at First Solar, confirms this viewpoint: "Saudi Arabia has all the factors needed to achieve a low levelized cost of electricity compared to other mature solar markets - factors such as access to low-cost finance, land availability, solar irradiance resource, well-developed construction companies, EPCs and O&M providers".

Following almost a year of delays and uncertainty, K.A.CARE's silence since the release of the competitive procurement process white paper has raised a wide range of speculations over the future of CSP in Saudi Arabia. But the truth is a great deal is cooking beneath the surface.

Qatar has unveiled a first-of-its-kind solar-panel factory, saying it was now the largest solar-power producer in the region with the ability to generate 300mw of energy a year. On Sunday, the Qatar Solar Energy company also announced a three-phase plan to eventually produce 2.5gw of solar energy annually, though QSE board member Reyad Fezzani would not specify a timeframe. 

Jordan has scrapped plans for a procurement round to build four 100MW renewable energy power plants after failing to secure the finance needed to expand the national power grid to accommodate them.

In a statement on its website, the Energy Ministry confirmed that the round, which was open to both solar and wind projects, has been shelved.

"We could not secure the funds to expand the capacity of the national grid to absorb the load of these four projects," Energy Minister Mohammad Hamed said, told the Jordan Times.       

Employing solar (abundant) to tackle the perennial problem of providing clean water (scarce) in one of the world's hottest, driest and richest regions - that is the challenge laid down this week by the Dubai ruler and UAE vice president, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Speaking at this year's launch of the UAE Water Aid Foundation, Al Maktoum threw down the gauntlet to some of the world's leading research institutes to devise a solar-powered solution to tackling the Middle East region's chief problem - securing a safe, steady and sustainable water supply.

The reward for any successful solar endeavor adopted by the UAE is set at US$1 million, which is sure to turn the heads of solar experts convinced they can be of assistance.

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