KUWAIT CITY, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Kuwaiti new electricity minister has said Kuwait is determined to produce 15 percent of power from renewable energy by 2030.
"The Electricity Ministry commits itself to generating 15 percent of power out of renewable energy by 2030," said Bakheet Shibeeb Al-Rasheedi, Minister of Electricity and Water.
Renewable energy production will start at Dibdibah solar-power plant by generating approximately 1,500 megawatts in the initial stage and then the required output by 2030, the minister noted.
The minister also said negotiations for importing Iraqi gas has made progress, expecting to agree on the final price within a couple of months.
Kuwait relied on oil resources to fuel its rapid economic development in the 20th century. The Gulf country is now interested in technologies that generate power from its deserts.
The deserts in Kuwait contain abundant solar and wind resources. Its solar potential, as measured in global horizontal irradiance, amounts to 1,900 kilowatt-hour per square meter per year, according to International Renewable Energy Agency data.
