From powering our homes and workplaces to fueling our cars and charging our cell phones, it is an undeniable fact that energy is critical to our everyday lives. With the world’s population projected to grow to 8.6 billion by 2030, we can expect energy demand to witness a significant surge in the long term.
This global megatrend bodes well for the utilities sector, as it forecasts needs well into the future, but also poses a challenge: How do we provide energy that is accessible, reliable, efficient and sustainable?
Aware of the issue, Middle East countries are beginning to diversify their energy sources – a curious development considering that the region is home to some of the world’s leading oil and gas producers. Despite this, governments across the region are setting renewable energy targets, irrespective of their position on the global resource spectrum.
Oil-rich Saudi Arabia has a target of 9.5 gigawatts under Saudi Vision 2030, and the UAE aims to produce nearly half of its electricity via renewables by 2050. Meanwhile, Jordan – an energy importer – plans to boost its renewable energy capacity to 1.8 gigawatts by 2020.
While these targets are promising for renewable energy companies, as they demonstrate a commitment to the development and financing of the industry, the utilities sector must also address the intermittency of renewable energy supply with viable storage solutions – such as batteries – in order to ensure the sustainability of its uptake.
While conventional power plants operating on diesel or gas boast a continuous supply of electricity – primarily because these resources can be stored for future use – renewable energy sources exist within a ‘use it or lose it’ window. This perceived barrier for their adoption can be overcome through leveraging battery storage solutions to store the energy until it is needed.
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