Middle East

The report is a summary of the workshop on solar water heating (SWH) technology which took place in Cairo in March 2009. The workshop looked into the technical aspects, framework conditions and private sector needs in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestinian Territories, Syria and Tunisia.

This document from 2008 gives a comprehensive overview of CSP development in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. The paper first looks into the key drivers and key inhibitors that impact the growth of CSP. Particular attention is given to the cost factor of CSP such as initial investment costs and the operating & maintenance costs.

Modern Residential City for 25,000 people in 48 buildings on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi City, United Arab Emirates, shoud be supplied with solar heated water. Photo: Millennium Energy Industries

This working paper from the Center for Global Development (CGDEV) looks into the economics of solar thermal or concentrating solar power (CSP).

A document produced by the Trans-Mediterranean Renewable Energy Cooperation (TREC), in 2007, discusses the policy options and market situation of increasing the use of renewable energy in the so-called MENA region (Middle East and North Africa).

According to scientists, this region will be severely threatened by water scarcity problems in the coming years. Taking that into account, this document tries to show how renewable energies could be the solution to the imminent water crisis situation, notably the use of sea water desalination, combined with solar thermal power from deserts.