BIG Numbers: Planned 200 GW PV Plant in Saudi Arabia

[SageBrush]

Saudi Arabia to create world's biggest solar power firm

I had to scribble on paper for a few minutes to grasp just how immense this plant is going to be.
Not so much for typical Saudis or Americans, but a generic world household can cover their home and car energy needs with about 4kW PV so this plant covers 50 million of that type of household.

And in related news, the land of cheap PV PPAs is expecting to pay about $1 a watt for this project that includes a PV factory and battery backup. If I didn't know better, I'd say that they have a little bit of the Elon gene in them. BIG scale stuff.

 

[TheTalkingMule]

Keep in mind that even this announcement is still just talk until they break ground. I really don't see them truly going solar until after a successful Aramco IPO.

 

[SageBrush]

Keep in mind that even this announcement is still just talk until they break ground. I really don't see them truly going solar until after a successful Aramco IPO.

It is a no brainer for them

They currently make about 10 kWh of electricity from a gallon of oil.
It is beyond obvious that they should sell the gallon to Trump for $1.5 and produce the 10 kWh of electricity from PV for about 20 cents.

 

[TheTalkingMule]

Not a no brainer if it erodes the relevance of their sole source of revenue.

 

[AudubonB]

It truly is a monumental-scale project, if only at the MOU phase at present.

If I could be permitted just one wish, it would be that this announcement serve as a wake-up call to others: If THEY can do it, so can WE.

 

[SageBrush]

One interesting side effect: it probably just made trump's idiotic PV tariff irrelevant to the Chinese.

 

[AudubonB]

I thought of that, too; it may however be more important to remember that:

• This project is definitely a long-game - production won't even hit its stride until after even a two-term presidency
• The project encompasses manufacturing of panels within Saudi Arabia
• With that latter point, then IF Mr Musk's goal of creating GF-scale PV panel factories comes to fruition, then where better to employ them than in Saudi Arabia just for this project?

 

[SageBrush]

I thought of that, too; it may however be more important to remember that:

• This project is definitely a long-game - production won't even hit its stride until after even a two-term presidency
• The project encompasses manufacturing of panels within Saudi Arabia
• With that latter point, then IF Mr Musk's goal of creating GF-scale PV panel factories comes to fruition, then where better to employ them than in Saudi Arabia just for this project?

The plant is going to be be built in stages,
and I am (admittedly guessing) that the PV factory will be a later addition