The ambitious 'solar islands' project which was floated by Ras Al Khaimah three years ago, has reached a critical stage.

Ras al-Khaimah is currently testing the prototype to see if the plan is financially viable, the results of which will be available in two years.

The plan is to build large 'Solar Islands' floating in the sea. These giant floating islands will be fitted with solar panels which will convert solar energy into electricity and/or hydrogen.

Heat generated from the solar panels will create steam in underwater tanks. The steam will then be supplied to an onshore power turbine through a pipeline.

The basic technology is known and it works, Hamid Kayal, chief executive of CSEM-UAE, the company that has developed the prototype of a solar island, was quoted as saying.

The prototype is not to show it can produce electricity; it is to show how economically it can produce it, at what size, and where.

The test solar island measures 88 m in diameter and can produce 1 MW of thermal power, but the planned larger islands will range from 500 m to 5 km in diameter.

The Ras al-Khaimah government will provide funding for the project on a six-month basis depending on work progress.

Ras al-Khaimah, which has ambitious plans to develop industrial zones and huge housing infrastructure, has just 0.1 per cent of the country’s oil reserves and 0.6 per cent of the gas reserves.

CSEM UAE is a joint venture company between the government of Ras Al Khaimah and the Swiss Research Center CSEM SA.-TradeArabia News Service