Renewable energy has a mixed outlook in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, due to a reluctance to invest from some countries and an inability to afford renewables in others, according to GlobalData.
Several major MEA countries are actively supporting the growth of renewable energy through mechanisms such as renewable targets, renewable portfolio standards (RPS), feed in tariffs (FiTs) or auctions, net metering and tax exemptions or subsidies.
Anchal Agarwal, Power Analyst at GlobalData, says: “Most of the countries covered in MEA* have renewable energy targets, implying that these governments are actively supporting the growth of renewable energy in their respective countries. Some countries have capacity targets, while others have targets to achieve a fixed share of generation from renewable sources.”
Iran set a target in 2014 of 5 Gigawatts (GW) from wind and solar power, by 2020. In spite of this, renewable energy did not make much progress in the country. Hence, in January 2018, the government again declared a target of installing 1 GW of renewable energy projects every year from 2018 to 2022.
The availability of oil in the MEA region presents a major challenge to renewables. For example, in 2016, Saudi Arabia reduced its 2040 renewable goals from 50% to 10% of the country’s electricity supply. In April 2017, the country declared that it will develop 30 solar and wind projects over the next 10 years as part of the kingdom’s $50 billion program to boost power generation and cut its oil consumption.
Agarwal continues: “A noticeable observation in the MEA region is the growing popularity of the auction/tender mechanism to develop large-scale renewable projects. Countries such as Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and UAE have auction mechanism for various renewable energy technologies. However, countries including Algeria, Iran, Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania have already proposed the renewable auctions and they are expected to announce it within a year.”
FiTs and net metering are other major policy support mechanisms used by governments of Middle East & African countries to promote renewable energy. Six countries have FiT schemes for various renewable technologies, and Ghana and UAE are the only countries to have proposed a net-metering scheme.
* MEA countries covered = Algeria, Angola, Egypt, Ghana, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Morocco, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Syria and UAE.
Related Stories
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2023
2023 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms
A record 552 AEC firms submitted data for BD+C's 2023 Giants 400 Report. The final report includes 137 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2023
Top 175 Architecture Firms for 2023
Gensler, HKS, Perkins&Will, Corgan, and Perkins Eastman top the rankings of the nation's largest architecture firms for nonresidential building and multifamily housing work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2023 Giants 400 Report.
Apartments | Aug 22, 2023
Key takeaways from RCLCO's 2023 apartment renter preferences study
Gregg Logan, Managing Director of real estate consulting firm RCLCO, reveals the highlights of RCLCO's new research study, “2023 Rental Consumer Preferences Report.” Logan speaks with BD+C's Robert Cassidy.
Market Data | Aug 18, 2023
Construction soldiers on, despite rising materials and labor costs
Quarterly analyses from Skanska, Mortenson, and Gordian show nonresidential building still subject to materials and labor volatility, and regional disparities.
Apartments | Aug 14, 2023
Yardi Matrix updates near-term multifamily supply forecast
The multifamily housing supply could increase by up to nearly 7% by the end of 2023, states the latest Multifamily Supply Forecast from Yardi Matrix.
Hotel Facilities | Aug 2, 2023
Top 5 markets for hotel construction
According to the United States Construction Pipeline Trend Report by Lodging Econometrics (LE) for Q2 2023, the five markets with the largest hotel construction pipelines are Dallas with a record-high 184 projects/21,501 rooms, Atlanta with 141 projects/17,993 rooms, Phoenix with 119 projects/16,107 rooms, Nashville with 116 projects/15,346 rooms, and Los Angeles with 112 projects/17,797 rooms.
Market Data | Aug 1, 2023
Nonresidential construction spending increases slightly in June
National nonresidential construction spending increased 0.1% in June, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau. Spending is up 18% over the past 12 months. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.07 trillion in June.
Hotel Facilities | Jul 27, 2023
U.S. hotel construction pipeline remains steady with 5,572 projects in the works
The hotel construction pipeline grew incrementally in Q2 2023 as developers and franchise companies push through short-term challenges while envisioning long-term prospects, according to Lodging Econometrics.
Hotel Facilities | Jul 26, 2023
Hospitality building construction costs for 2023
Data from Gordian breaks down the average cost per square foot for 15-story hotels, restaurants, fast food restaurants, and movie theaters across 10 U.S. cities: Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, Seattle, and Washington, D.C.
Market Data | Jul 24, 2023
Leading economists call for 2% increase in building construction spending in 2024
Following a 19.7% surge in spending for commercial, institutional, and industrial buildings in 2023, leading construction industry economists expect spending growth to come back to earth in 2024, according to the July 2023 AIA Consensus Construction Forecast Panel.