Desert Technologies will build a $200 million factory in Jeddah to produce equipment with as much as 5 gigawatts of solar capacity a year, the company said in a statement. Its current assembly line in the west coast city has a production capacity of 110 megawatts, according to the firm’s website.
Saudi Arabia is ramping up its production of green energy to satisfy domestic demand as it diversifies beyond fossil fuels. The kingdom is pursuing a target of 130 gigawatts of installed renewable capacity by 2030, which will require enormous investment and access to solar panels. It had less than 2.5 gigawatts of solar power plants installed last year, according to BloombergNEF.
Chinese manufacturers have dominated the market for photovoltaic solar panel production, but Saudi Arabia wants to use its domestic usage to drive its own industrial development. Desert Technologies is targeting local demand for solar infrastructure, as well as export markets, it said.
The plant will span an area of 170,000 square meters and will include 2 gigawatts per year of solar panel manufacturing and 3 gigawatts for solar cells. The total amount is equivalent to a quarter of the capacity Saudi Arabia expects to sign with project developers by 2030.
