ABB technology automates giant solar energy farm in Abu Dhabi

The Al Dhafra PV2 Solar project in Abu Dhabi – for which ABB supplies automation and optimization power generation solutions – is now exporting 100 percent of its designed capacity onto the grid. Covering an area of 20 square km in the Al Dhafra region, located around 30 km south of Abu Dhabi City, the 2 GW plant uses four million solar modules to generate enough electricity for 200,000 homes across the UAE per year. It will also help reduce Abu Dhabi’s annual CO2 emissions by more than 2.4 million metric tons, the equivalent of removing approximately 470,000 combustion cars from the roads.

ABB was appointed by China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC), the Engineering, Procurement and Construction contractor for the facility – the world’s largest single-site photovoltaic project1. The plant is pivotal to the UAE Energy Strategy which aims to triple the share of renewables by 2030 as part of a goal to increase clean energy and reduce carbon emissions from power generation to achieve net zero by 20502.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), solar PV is reshaping global electricity supply and continues to grow at an astonishing rate. Manufacturing capacity is expected to double during 2024, reaching almost 1,000 GW, which is sufficient to meet the annual IEA Net Zero by 2050 demand of almost 650 GW in 20303.

Leveraging ABB Ability™ Symphony Plus, a distributed control system designed to maximize plant efficiency and reliability through automation, ABB is integrating inputs into a single user-friendly overview. As a result, operators can utilize data insights from all areas of the plant, delivered in real time, to drive efficiency, reduce risk and ensure production optimization. Operational excellence is further enhanced through the supply of ABB digital, electrical and telecom solutions including metering and solar process modelling.

“Not only does ABB share our vision for a clean energy future for the UAE, but their early engagement and collaboration facilitated the development of an integrated system architecture that met our expectation,” said Ali Albeshr, Executive Managing Director of Al Dhafra Solar PV. “We are confident that ABB’s technology will be instrumental in sustaining Al Dhafra operations for the future.”

Al Dhafra PV2 marks ABB’s first solar project in the UAE and reflects ABB’s continued drive to increase its automation and digital footprint in the region’s expanding renewable energy market.

“The UAE’s ambition is to reach 14 GW of clean energy by 2030, and projects such as Al Dhafra PV2 will be a major contributing factor in meeting this target,” said Brandon Spencer, President of ABB Energy Industries. “ABB enables safe, smart and sustainable investment in a low carbon future through automation, electrification and digitalization solutions. We are proud to support the UAE in its transition toward a cleaner energy future.”

By collaborating and developing strategic projects and partnerships in the region, ABB is focused upon supporting Emiratization efforts and knowledge transfer to drive change and support economic diversification.