Saudi Solar Energy is full of vitality and multi-factors to promote solar energy development

In addition to sufficient sunshine, Saudi Arabia's development of solar energy has many advantages that other countries cannot match. For example, there is ample land, there is a large desert, and the sand contains a lot of silicon, silicon is an important material for the production of solar photovoltaic panels and other related products. In addition, Saudi Arabia has a large amount of manpower. Many young people are eagerly seeking a job and developing solar energy industry can provide a lot of jobs.

Oil shields the future of renewable energy

Abundant oil and gas resources are courtesy gift from Saudi Arabia. This courtesy also brought great wealth to them. As an important member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Saudi Arabia plays an important role in the oil market. However, it is also such a rich oil and gas resources that Saudi Arabia has always been less active in the development of renewable energy. However, it is no wonder that oil is the lifeblood of Saudi Arabia. According to a recent survey by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Saudi oil revenue reached US$324 billion in 2011. 80% to 90% of government revenue, 45% of GDP, and 90% of exports are all from oil. Faced with this situation, who is willing to give up oil instead of developing renewable energy that is expensive and not necessarily profitable?

Although oil is sufficient to support Saudi Arabia’s economic development from the current situation, the debate over whether Saudi oil production has peaked in recent years is increasingly fierce. Although Saudi Arabia has one-fifth of global oil reserves, many oil experts believe that Saudi Arabia has now reached its peak output.

Achieving the peak means that it is difficult to achieve a greater breakthrough in output, while at the same time the global energy demand is increasing. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) 2010 Energy Outlook, global oil production has peaked in 2006, but energy demand continues to grow and will double by 2030. Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries have also had to turn their attention to solar energy or other renewable energy that they did not care about before and started investing in it.

On the other hand, Saudi Arabia’s oil consumption is also ranked first in the GCC countries, and a large amount of oil is used to generate electricity. According to data from Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabia consumed an average of 800,000 barrels of oil per day for power generation in December 2011, and this figure is still growing at an alarming rate.

Many factors promote solar energy development

Indeed, Saudi Arabia has made some investments in renewable energy in the past two years to promote the development of the renewable energy industry. Although this is more than just Saudi Arabia’s money spent in the oil field, the significance of this shift is very significant. The development of renewable energy means reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Saudi oil revenue may also be affected. These things Saudi Arabia had never thought about before.

Apart from the oil peak, another reason why Saudi Arabia is willing to open its grip on renewable energy is environmental issues. Whether it is land or water resources, it has a significant impact on economic development. Water shortages and food shortages will directly affect the health and life safety of local residents. In addition, due to the increasing difficulties in increasing production, the costs of oil exploration and development are also gradually increasing. This is also a new challenge for Saudi Arabia.

Renewable energy sources can precisely solve these problems faced by Saudi Arabia. As we all know, renewable energy is much cleaner than fossil fuels. Solar and wind power generation can be closely integrated with seawater desalination. This energy-intensive model is exactly what Saudi Arabia desalinates. In addition, the summer season is usually the peak of electricity consumption in Saudi Arabia, and it is also the best time for Saudi Arabia to use the solar energy to generate the strongest sunshine.

Employment and population growth become new challenges

In addition to facing many challenges such as oil peaks and environmental problems, employment, like many countries, is also a major challenge for Saudi Arabia. The population of Saudi Arabia grows at a rate of 1.5% (26 million) each year, and 68% of Saudi Arabia's population is between 15 and 64 years old. The aging of the population is a major social issue that people often refer to. However, the ageing of the population also brings many contradictions. The greatest pressure comes from employment. A large number of young people continue to pour into the society to find jobs, but the rate at which the government creates jobs is far from keeping up. Not to mention that in Saudi Arabia, only 7% to 15% of women have employment opportunities because of their special reasons.

In addition, the influx of a large number of migrant workers has also impacted the Saudi job market. Whether it is cheap physical workers or expensive technical workers, the Saudi job market has been occupied by a large number of migrant workers. At present, there are about 5 million migrant workers in Saudi Arabia, which is 2/3 of the total number of workers in Saudi Arabia and 95% of the private workers in Saudi Arabia.

At the same time as population growth is not able to achieve diversified economic development, Saudi Arabia is naturally incapable of creating employment. In 1999, the working population was 3.17 million. By 2020, this figure will reach 10.76 million. The result of this development is high unemployment. The unemployment rate announced by the Saudi government in 2010 was 11%, but many experts believe that the actual figure is much higher than this.

In fact, the Saudi government has invested a lot of money in education and training over the past ten years in hopes of diversifying its national economy and creating more jobs. The government even enacts legislation requiring foreign companies to employ a certain percentage of local employees, but it has had little success.

Solar energy is getting better and better

With the support and encouragement of the government, renewable energy has developed rapidly in the world in the past two years, especially in those developing countries with rapid economic growth. In some developed countries, renewable energy also makes a great contribution to job creation. This effect can also be achieved in Saudi Arabia. However, Saudi Arabia has such a good sunshine condition, but the only worry is the government factor. Lack of adequate policy support and the obstruction and opposition of some domestic forces may hinder the development of the solar industry in Saudi Arabia.

Although in the past two years, Saudi Arabia occasionally happily announced some large-scale solar energy or other renewable energy projects, but they are all "thunderstorms and little rain." In February last year, Oman Solar Company Phoenix was selected to build a 3,500 kilowatt solar park for Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil company. This is regarded as a bright spot for Saudi Arabia in the field last year.

Referring to the development of solar energy in Saudi Arabia over the past two years, there is a place that must be mentioned, that is, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Thanks to King Abdullah and the Saudi government, KAUST has attracted a large number of highly talented and potential graduate students specializing in solar energy and renewable energy.

On September 18 last year, the American Physicist Organization Network reported that the international scientific research team composed of scientists from the University of Toronto, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology of Saudi Arabia and the University of Pennsylvania at the latest issue The article in the journal Nature-Materials states that they used inorganic ligands instead of organic molecules to encapsulate quantum dots and passivate their surface (not easily chemically reacting with other substances), resulting in the highest conversion efficiency to date (up to 6%) of colloidal quantum dots (CQD) solar cells.

Although there are not many bright spots on the project, Saudi Arabia has made the world see its determination to develop solar energy in terms of solar energy technology. Today, the outlook for the solar industry in Saudi Arabia is getting better and better. Saudi Arabia plans that 10% of the country's total electricity will come from photovoltaics by 2020, and will eventually become the world's largest solar PV market. The Saudi government hopes that by 2020, the installed capacity of photovoltaic power generation will reach 5 million kilowatts. The Saudi government hopes that the start-up PV industry can create 15,000 jobs. The Saudi government is also encouraging its own country to develop photovoltaic power plants and build raw material processing plants, photovoltaic assembly plants and other related facilities.

Obviously, the government realized that only solar energy can help Saudi Arabia meet its future challenges. The large-scale installation of solar panels will create a large number of job opportunities, optimize Saudi’s economic structure, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and be friendly to the environment. Most importantly, Saudi Arabia can also conserve its oil and gas resources as much as possible, leaving more wealth for future generations.