Statement by EWS-WWF on Dubai's 15% Solar Energy Targets

Dear Reader:

On behalf of EWS-WWF, I write to congratulate the Emirate of Dubai and HE Saeed Al Tayer who announced yesterday that Dubai has tripled its target to generate solar energy to 15% by 2030 (and 7% by 2020).

This is a proud moment for the UAE and signifies something that we have always believed in – that this country and region has vast potential to generate renewable energy, and its deployment is a crucial way to help reduce the UAE’s carbon footprint.

The timing of this target revision is not insignificant, where recently Dubai announced the details of the winning bid for its 100MW solar plant. The winning bid by Acwa Power set a new world record low price for a solar project at $5.98 US cents per kWh, much cheaper than gas, coal and other traditional sources of energy. Obtaining such a price also prompted Dubai to double the capacity of this project to 200MW and shows that there is now an unarguable economic case for solar energy in the UAE.

I am hopeful that this will signify a coming solar revolution for the UAE where more projects are implemented for the country to meet and even surpass its targets. This solar revolution is integral to the UAE’s advancements to the Green Economy for Sustainable Development. Not only will this drive down the countries’ greenhouse gas emissions, but also generate new jobs and create much added value to the economy and improve energy security. We at EWS-WWF stand by to support this transition to solar energy.

Congratulations on this milestone!

Ida Tillisch
Director General
EWS-WWF