The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) has announced plans for the largest battery storage facility in the world to enable the entire site to be powered by renewable energy, 24 hours a day.
The development on the west coast of Saudi Arabia, which spans 28,000km2 and will include 50 hotels when complete, will be powered solely by wind and solar energy.
The complex will rely on a 1000MWh battery storage facility.
“The size and scale of TRSDC’s battery storage facility puts this iconic regenerative tourism destination at the forefront of the global transition towards carbon neutrality.
“Wind and solar capacity are set to exceed coal and gas in less than five years, and we are keen to drive the pace of change,” said John Pagano, chief executive of TRSDC.
“We have always been committed to pushing the boundaries of what it means to be sustainable, and these efforts will play a significant role in the country’s ambition to become a greener nation.
“By powering the destination with 100 percent clean and renewable energy, we will make this vision a reality,” he added.
The battery storage facility is one part of a significant partnership agreement that TRSDC recently awarded to an ACWA Power consortium to design, build, operate and transfer utilities infrastructure at the development.
Battery storage is needed to support site-wide energy resilience, providing the power required at night when solar generation is not possible.
It will also ensure supply in the case of outages when shutdowns occur due to potential faults or sandstorms affecting production.
The blend of solar and wind power generation will also guarantee a reliable supply of energy to the destination.
Included in the 25-year concession agreement is the provision of renewable power, potable water, sustainable solid waste management, wastewater treatment and district cooling infrastructure.
The construction of three seawater reverse osmosis plants at the project will provide clean drinking water.