Renewable Resource Atlas of Saudi Arabia
King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (K.A.CARE) presents this Renewable Resource Atlas of Saudi Arabia in support of achievement of a sustainable energy mix. The Atlas provides newly collected and historical solar and wind resource monitoring data, plus satellite-based modeled data, for use by developers, researchers, government institutions, and policymakers. It also provides reports of the solar monitoring network as well as individual stations. The Atlas will continue to grow as a foundational program of K.A.CARE.
Why is the Renewable Resource Atlas needed?
The current state of knowledge on renewable resource characteristics in Saudi Arabia is not adequate to support power project development, research, and policy and planning. For example, solar power project developers need to understand the monthly, daily, and even sub-hourly patterns of solar resources, which are heavily impacted by dust levels and clouds, to support project siting and design. Researchers also need to understand dust levels and solar spectral information for selecting coatings and cleaning methods for power installations, and optimize power conversion technologies for Saudi Arabia's unique environment. The Atlas has been launched as part of K.A.CARE's Monitoring and Mapping Program, to support users such as power project developers and financers, researchers, government organizations, industries, academics, and the general public.
What is contained in the Renewable Resource Atlas?
The Renewable Resource Atlas of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is an online data portal developed by King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (K.A.CARE) which contains the most up-to-date and comprehensive information on renewable resources. The online data portal currently contains extensive information on solar and wind resources, SENNA model, and includes:
- The solar resource and associated meteorological data come primarily from a newly operational network of over 50 ground-based monitoring stations around the Kingdom.
- The Atlas also contains modeled solar and wind resource information, based primarily on satellite datasets.
- The Atlas contains wind resource data (at 100 m height) from wind monitoring masts which were installed in 2015. A total of 29 monitoring masts will be installed eventually.