Kolkata The United Arab Emirates said it has succeeded in generating solar power at the cost of thermal power. The parity, achieved for the first time, promises to make solar power economically attractive and commercially viable. The achievement has been documented in a 'REmap 20
Kolkata
The United Arab Emirates said it has succeeded in generating solar power at the cost of thermal power. The parity, achieved for the first time, promises to make solar power economically attractive and commercially viable.
The achievement has been documented in a 'REmap 2030' report published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), in conjunction with Masdar Institute and the UAE's foreign affairs ministry's Directorate of Energy and Climate Change.
The development augurs well for the renewable energy sector in other countries including India, which has embarked on an ambitious plan to build renewable energy capacity.
The sector has been complaining about high cost of equipment for setting up solar generation plants, which in turn increases power generation costs, making solar power uncompetitive when compared to thermal or nuclear power. This is the case even as the difference between the cost of solar power and thermal power generation has been narrowing.
IRENA is an intergovernmental organisation that supports countries in their transition to a sustainable energy future and serves as the principal platform for international cooperation, a centre of excellence and a repository of policy, technology, resources and financial knowledge on renewable energy.
Masdar Institute is the world's first graduate-level university for sustainability and clean energy fields, located in Abu Dhabi and developed in partnership with the US-based Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The ministry of foreign affairs' Directorate of Energy and Climate Change serves as the UAE's representative to IRENA.
