The UAE’s first floating solar power plant will start energy production in Abu Dhabi.

Located off Nurai Island, which is a 15 minute boat ride from the UAE capital, the floating solar panels will give an additional 80 kilowatts of solar power energy to the nearby Zaya Nurai resort, where there are already 1,000 kilowatts of rooftop and ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) systems.

The project focuses to pave the way for floating renewable energy solutions in the emirates. UAE-based sustainable energy company, Enerwhere is behind the project.

Feras Shadid, Head of the Off-grid Division at Enerwhere said, “We wanted to build solar systems on the island without jeopardising the beach space that many tourists enjoy. Our solution was utilising the sea, which we have in abundance. Floating solar plants are complex as there are many integral factors such as the dimensions of the structure and the availability of a connection point. The project is expected to be commissioned in few days.

“Abu Dhabi has around 150 islands that could benefit from floating renewable energy solutions,” Shadid added. “We need to cater to the needs of those islands. Our next focus as well is the World Islands in Dubai. These places generally use diesel and we hope that through the success of our project in Nurai Island, we can promote more sustainable options for those islands. Considering that we are a UAE-based company, we do ensure that our projects begin locally, however we do have aspirations to take this project to the Maldives and Seychelles as well.”