The Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) will start supplying solar photovoltaic (PV) energy services to customers by the middle of 2018, according to a regulation issued by the Electricity and Co-Generation Regulatory Authority.

Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Bishi, head of Distribution Services and Leader of the Renewable Energy Initiative at the SEC, said that a team of experts and specialists from the company are working on the preparation of the systems and the technical designs needed to launch the project with high reliability according to the latest solar energy technologies in the world.

Al Bishi said that the company will allow the initial application for the service on its website se.com.sa starting from September 17, in order to estimate how many participants wish to install solar systems and study the volume of demand and energy produced and its impact on the public network.

He explained that the qualified participant can submit the final application for the installation and connection of small photovoltaic solar systems to the public network on July 1, 2018.

The details of the service application, instructions, forms and required procedures will be published on the SEC website to facilitate the service to subscribers.

"In cooperation with the specialized agencies, the specifications of the approved equipment required to connect the solar systems to the public electrical network will be prepared and published, as well as the approved list of contractors / consultants,” Al Bishi said.

“The qualified participant will be able to choose the agency to design the appropriate systems for his establishment, as well as the contractor he wishes to contract for implementation in preparation for the examination of solar systems by specialists of the Saudi Electricity Company, to ensure the conformity of equipment and devices used to the approved specifications, the integrity of installations, and the results of tests,” he added.

Based on the regulation, the company will install digital meters showing the energy produced by solar systems, energy consumed, and excess power added to the public electricity network, as well as updating the current billing systems to fit with this new project. – TradeArabia News Service