Let it shine: top solar projects worldwide

Australia on Wednesday approved plans for a massive solar hub intended to power millions of homes domestically and supply electricity to Singapore.

The SunCable project is expected to produce 6 gigawatts (GW) and begin supplying power by 2030.

Here is a look at other major solar projects that have been announced, are under construction or are already operating worldwide.

Midong solar project, China

Most of the biggest operational solar farms are in China, which is adding renewable capacity at a rate that far outstrips the rest of the world.

In June, the Midong solar power project in the Xinjiang region was brought online, with an operating capacity of 3.5GW.

The project is touted as China’s biggest yet, exceeding the capacity of its two previous largest solar projects in Ningxia and Qinghai regions.

But it is likely to be overtaken soon, with other megaprojects already in the works, including the Inner Mongolia Tengger solar farm.

The project is under construction and is projected to have a capacity of 8GW, according to Global Energy Monitor’s (GEM) solar tracker.

China is building almost twice as much wind and solar capacity as every other country combined.

It has 339GW under construction, including 180GW of solar, according to GEM.

Khavda solar park, India

The Khavda solar park is an enormous renewable energy project under construction in a desolate region of India’s Gujarat, near the border with Pakistan.

A hybrid solar-wind project, it is slated to have a whopping 30GW capacity when fully operational, around 2027.

The site has already begun generating power however, with 551 megawatts of solar capacity coming online earlier this year, according to Adani Green Energy, one of the firms developing the massive site.

It says the park will be the world’s largest renewable energy installation when complete, and capable of powering 16.1 million homes a year.

India, which is currently heavily dependent on coal, aims to install 500GW of renewable energy by 2030, and achieve net-zero emissions by 2070.

Al Dhafra, United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates inaugurated the 2GW Al Dhafra solar plant last year, weeks before it hosted UN climate talks.

Located south of the capital Abu Dhabi, it stretches over 21 square kilometres (eight square miles) of desert, an area about one-fifth the size of Paris.

The project was described as the largest single-site photovoltaic power plant in the world upon its inauguration.

It can generate enough power for 160,000 homes across the oil-rich Gulf state.

The UAE aims to triple its renewable energy over the next seven years as it attempts to achieve net zero by 2050.

Benban Solar Park, Egypt

Egypt’s Benban Solar Park, built in the western desert some 40 kilometres from the city of Aswan, was connected to the national grid in 2019.

It is often described as Africa’s largest solar project and one of the world’s biggest, with a capacity of around 1.5GW, though that could be increased if planned expansions go ahead.

Visible from space, the $4 billion World Bank-funded project stretches over 37 square kilometres (14 square miles) and produces enough electricity to supply 420,000 households, according to the UN.

Chill Sun Project, United States

Among the biggest planned solar farms in the United States is the Chill Sun Solar Project.

The projected 2.25GW facility is proposed for construction in the sun-drenched state of Nevada, which is already home to dozens of smaller solar plants.

The United States is adding renewable capacity fast, behind only China, but at a far slower rate.

It has 40GW of wind and solar in construction compared to China’s 339GW, and it generates 16 percent of its electricity from wind and solar, according to Ember, a think tank.

© 2024 AFP