MENA Newswire News Desk: The United Arab Emirates is expected to exceed its renewable energy capacity goals for 2030, according to a report by the International Energy Agency. The IEA’s “Renewables 2024” report highlights that the MENA region collectively aims to achieve 201 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy capacity by 2030. While the forecast suggests a 26 percent shortfall, certain countries, including the UAE, are set to surpass their targets.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Algeria contribute nearly 60 percent of the region’s renewable capacity ambitions. Although the outlook for these markets is more optimistic than in previous years, the IEA indicates that they will still fall short of their 2030 goals. Nevertheless, significant progress is anticipated in renewable capacity, particularly in the solar photovoltaic (PV) sector. According to the IEA, the MENA region could increase its renewable capacity by 60 percent, reaching 152 GW, if key challenges are addressed.
The first obstacle is the need to accelerate auction processes for renewable energy projects. Delays in launching tenders, selecting winners, and signing power purchase agreements (PPAs) are slowing progress, and expediting these steps would bring more projects online sooner. The second challenge lies in improving regulatory frameworks for distributed solar PV. Several countries have legal frameworks allowing for self-consumption and excess electricity remuneration, yet deployment remains limited in the commercial and residential sectors, with the UAE being a notable exception.
The report also highlights the need for reforms in electricity tariffs to make renewable energy investments more financially attractive, particularly for large industries. The report stresses that greater industrial electrification and reducing barriers for new market entrants could further accelerate renewable energy growth. Facilitating the widespread adoption of corporate PPAs could unlock additional capacity and spur innovation across the energy sector.
Meanwhile, solar PV capacity in the Middle East and North Africa is expected to grow by 84 GW by 2030, with over half of this expansion attributed to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Overall, the region’s installed solar PV capacity is projected to increase fourfold between 2024 and 2030, expanding its share in the power mix from 2 percent to over 8 percent.