A rooftop solar power project at SeaWorld Abu Dhabi is being put up by Emerge, a joint venture between French utility EDF and Abu Dhabi’s sustainable energy business Masdar, as part of a deal with Yas Island management company Miral Asset Management, The National reported.
According to Masdar, the project will deploy rooftop solar photovoltaic panels with a combined capacity of 8.2 megawatts at the first SeaWorld location outside of North America.
The design, construction, operation, and maintenance of the project will be handled by Emerge.
The world’s largest aquarium, which will hold roughly 68,000 marine species, will be a showpiece of the Yas Island-based SeaWorld Abu Dhabi when it is finished in 2022.
“The deployment of new solar energy systems is consistent with our progress towards further leveraging the capacity of sustainable sources across our developments,” said Mohamed Al Zaabi, chief executive of Miral.
The UAE actively uses renewable energy sources to meet its sustainability commitments, which has resulted in a continued increase in the usage of solar power in the country.
According to the UAE’s Net Zero 2050 Strategic Initiative, which was unveiled in October, Dh600 billion ($163 billion) should be spent on clean and renewable energy sources over the following three decades.
According to the Australian company Compare the Market’s study on the Green Fuel Index, it also had the biggest rise in renewable energy capacity globally during the previous ten years.
A new solar project in Al Ajban, Abu Dhabi, that intends to rank among the largest in the world with a total power-producing capacity of 1,500 megawatts, was announced by the Emirates Water and Electricity Company in May.
Two of the world’s biggest solar installations are already located in the United Arab Emirates. One of these is the 5,000 megawatt Mohammed bin Rashid Solar Park in Dubai, while another is the Al Dharfra Solar Park in Abu Dhabi, which is slated to be built.
Precedence Research, a company located in Canada, predicts that the worldwide solar power industry will reach more than $368 billion by 2030, up from around $198 billion in 2021, and will expand at a compound annual rate of 7.2%.
“The private sector is playing a major role in supporting the UAE Energy Strategy 2050, and in achieving an energy mix that combines renewable and clean energy sources to balance economic requirements and environmental goals,” he said.
In order to investigate and work together on potential in the UAE and Saudi Arabia for distributed solar generating, energy efficiency, and street lighting, Emerge was founded.
Yas Island’s major attractions, such as Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, Yas Waterworld, Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, and Clymb Abu Dhabi, are managed by Miral, a company founded in 2011.
According to Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, chief executive of Masdar, the Emerge joint venture is “perfectly suited to complement Miral’s continuing environmental initiatives and, in turn, contribute to stimulating sustainable growth in the regional leisure and tourism industry.”