Bahrain to host world’s largest single-site rooftop solar power plant
A power purchase agreement is in place for a 123 MW solar project in Bahrain that will span 14 sites including the world’s largest rooftop solar installation, a 50 MW system on top of a 262,000 m2 stockyard shed.
The impact of dust on PV systems in arid coastal environments
A Saudi–Egyptian research team investigated the effects of four types of dust on photovoltaic panels in arid coastal environments, finding that power losses can reach up to 48%.
Saudi Arabia awards 3 GW of solar in sixth renewables tender round
Saudi Power Procurement Co. (SPPC) has concluded the sixth phase of the country’s National Renewable Energy Program by awarding four solar projects and one wind farm. They include the 1.4 GW Najran solar site, which has the second-lowest levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for solar energy to date.
Jordan opens solar tender for public hospitals
Jordan has launched a tender to supply and install solar thermal water heating systems at nine public hospitals, with applications due Nov. 6.
Hybrid PPA model improves PV-BESS bankability, say researchers
Researchers have modeled a hybrid financing scheme combining contracted and merchant components to improve the bankability of PV-battery energy storage system (PV-BESS) assets, using a Bayesian LSTM forecast integrated with a MILP optimization model to assess performance.
Masdar, EWEC break ground on 1 GW baseload solar-plus-storage project
Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co. (Masdar) and Emirates Water and Electricity Co. (EWEC) have started building a solar-plus-storage project in Abu Dhabi that will deliver 1 GW of continuous baseload energy from a 5.2 GW solar plant paired with a 19 GWh battery system.
PV-driven desalination system for brackish water
Algerian researchers have built a single-stage solar and battery desalination system for brackish water that uses a hybrid spotted hyena optimizer and maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm to improve efficiency. Simulations and real-time tests showed high performance, steady water output, and low salinity under changing solar conditions.
Machine learning-based fault detection technique for bifacial PV
A UAE research team developed a hybrid 1D-CNN and random forest model to detect multiple faults in bifacial PV systems, including dust, shading, aging, and cracks. Using simulated I-V curves and a 180-day synthetic dataset, the model achieved up to 100% accuracy in general state detection and 97.6% in specific fault classification.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: Energy China secures 5 GW EPC deal in Saudi Arabia
Energy China has signed three EPC contracts worth $2.7 billion for 5 GW of wind and solar projects in Saudi Arabia with partners including PIF and Aramco Power.
Bahrain launches tender for 100 MW solar project
The BAJ Solar IPP projects is planned to have a capacity of 100 MW and to be located near Bilaj Al Jazayer, on the Southwest coast of Bahrain.
