Oman-based Phoenix Solar, a subsidiary of Phoenix Solar of Germany, an international photovoltaic system integrator, is to build a solar park with a peak power of 3.5 megawatts for Saudi Aramco. Saudi Aramco, described as the world’s largest oil producing company, commissioned Phoenix Solar last year to install a photovoltaic testing field designed to analyse different module technologies at its headquarters in Dhahran.
The solar power plant will be built on land where the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) is currently under construction – close to Riyadh. KAPSARC is said to be the largest energy research centre in the world. The construction of KAPSARC is geared towards achieving LEED Platinum certification. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), developed by the US Green Building Council, is a system which rates green building and sets standards for sustainable building.
Together with Naizak Global Engineering Systems, its local project partner in Saudi Arabia, Phoenix Solar will design and build the grid-connected ground-mounted photovoltaic plant by the end of September 2011. Phoenix Solar’s principal is M.R. Khathlan (MRK), a Saudi company which, in its capacity as general contractor, will design and build the electricity and water supply of KAPSARC.
“The solar market in the Gulf region is still in its infancy. There is, however, a huge potential for solar power plants in Saudi Arabia. We are delighted to be able to build the largest ground-mounted plant in Saudi Arabia and will use our know-how to support the introduction of renewable energies into Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region to the best of our ability”, commented Klaus Friedl, general manager of Phoenix Solar.
