GCC Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2021 - 2026)

The GCC solar photovoltaic (PV) market is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 12.5% during the forecast period. With the COVID-19 outbreak in Q1 of 2020, the GCC solar PV market didn’t witness any major negative impact. Though a few countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar had very less number of new installations in 2020 due to delays in solar projects, however, the overall region’s installed capacity increased with a major boost from the United Arab Emirates. Factors such as the declining price of solar PV modules and targets to reduce carbon emissions are expected to drive the market. However, a slow pace in solar PV technology development in countries like Qatar is expected to hinder the market growth during the study period.

Key Highlights

• With the upcoming large-scale solar PV projects, the utility sector is expected to dominate the market during the study period.
• The countries in the region have targets to increase the share of renewable energy in their energy mix by 2050. For instance, the United Arab Emirates has a target of increasing clean energy share to 44% by 2050. Similarly, Saudi Arabia has a target of generating 50% renewable electricity by 2030. Hence, such a trend is expected to create opportunity for the market to grow in the near future.
• With a significant installed capacity in 2020, the United Arab Emirates is expected to dominate the market during the study period.

Key Market Trends

Utility Sector as a Significant Sector

• The utility sector is estimated to hold the majority share in GCC solar PV market. Over, last five years, the sector grew with the commissioning of various large-scale projects like Noor Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, and Sakaka PV IPP among others.
• As per Middle-East Solar Industry Association, the region has four under-construction projects, and more than fifteen upcoming solar PV projects.
• Noor Energy 1 solar tower in Phase 4 of MBR Solar Park is one of the prominent upcoming projects. As of April 2021, the project is 87% complete, and is expected to provide clean electricity for approximately 320,000 residences and will help to reduce 1.6 million tonnes of carbon emissions every year.
• Manah Solar I & II in Oman, and Al-Rass in Saudi Arabia are few upcoming projects, which are in various stages of development.
• With such projects in hand the segment would act as significant contributor to the region solar PV market, which has an installed capacity of around 2.9 GW in 2020.

United Arab Emirates to Dominate the Market

• The United Arab Emirates is one of the largest countries of natural gas usage for electricity production in the Middle East. The United Arab Emirates, being a major oil and gas producer, finds it more economical and cost-efficient to use gas as its primary energy generation.
• In recent years, the country has undertaken significant steps toward adopting renewable energy, particularly in the solar energy sector. To meet the rising energy demand, the country embarked on a challenging mission to increase its energy security by diversifying its energy sources and increasing the share of solar energy in its power mix in the coming years.
• ​Further, the country witnessed an increase in the solar power installed capacity from 1,818 MW in 2019 to 2,439 MW in 2020, registering a growth of 32%.
• Furthermore, factors like favorable geographical conditions have converged to make solar energy an attractive option to meet the country’s energy needs. The country is geographically well-positioned, with solar irradiance of approximately 2,285 kWh/m2. The country has one of the highest solar exposure rates globally, thereby, holding tremendous potential for renewable energy development.
• With various upcoming projects like Al Dhafra, and Abu Dhabi solar PV projects, the country is expected to dominate the solar PV market during the study period.

Competitive Landscape

The GCC solar photovoltaic (PV) market is moderately fragmented. The key players in the market include Canadian Solar Inc., First Solar Inc, Masdar Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, Dubai Electricity, and Water Authority, and ACWA Power among others.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
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