Solar Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Silex Systems, has announced the completion of a 1MW solar power generation facility at the Nofa Equestrian Resort near Riyadh.

Completion of the 28-dish, diesel replacement facility marks an important milestone for Solar Systems as the first international deployment of the Company's unique 'Dense Array' Concentrated Photovoltaic (CPV) technology.

The facility also gives Solar Systems a presence in one of the world's largest emerging renewable energy markets. Saudi Arabia plans to build 41GW of solar energy generating capacity over the next two decades under a $109 billion competitive procurement program administered by the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KA CARE).

The Kingdom plans to generate a third of its electricity from solar energy by 2032 to partly offset approximately $100 billion (at current oil prices) of annual export revenues lost due to domestic oil consumption.

Silex Systems CEO Michael Goldsworthy said local conditions in Saudi Arabia suited deployment of Solar Systems' CPV technology.

"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has a high Direct Normal Irradiance (DNI), very high average daily temperatures and negligible cloud cover, making it well-suited to Solar Systems' technology," Dr Goldsworthy said.

"There are significant opportunities to develop solar projects in Saudi Arabia.

"Interestingly, KA CARE will also be responsible for the roll-out of a significant nuclear power program under plans to build 18GW of nuclear generating capacity, or around 16 large nuclear power plants. This is positive for our foundation technology, the Silex laser uranium enrichment process, being commercialised by GE-Hitachi Global Laser Enrichment in the US,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service