The CEO of Electricity and Water Authority, Shaikh Nawaf Bin Ibrahim Bin Hamad Al Khalifa paid an inspection visit to Hawar Islands to view the existing infrastructure and potentials on the islands. The CEO was accompanied by a delegation from the Thai Electricity Holding Company (TEHC), together with a number of officials.
Shaikh Nawaf welcomed the Thai delegation, highlighting that the visit contributed in exchanging expertise and reviewing the latest developments in the energy and renewable energy field, where he briefed the Thai delegation on the Electricity and Water Authority’s project of establishing a pilot plant for the production of electricity working with the solar and wind powers, which will be constructed soon.
Shaikh Nawaf also stressed that because of the continuous and unlimited support by the government for the Electricity and Water Authority’s projects, the authority is exerting great efforts through its strategic plans to invest in the renewable energy available in Bahrain, and provide the best means to secure an environmental and more economic safe life. He also added that Huwar Islands are a natural reserve that should be maintained away from pollution during establishing the plants to produce electricity and water friendly to environment, such as those that are operating with renewable and alternative energy and also for cost reduction.
Electricity and Water Authority has received the applications of the companies engaged in the production of electricity and water from renewable energies and is organizing field trips for them to the proposed sites for the establishment of this type of plants in order to create a kind of competition among them, including the Thai Holding Company.
The authority wants to take advantage of the Thai technological techniques in the production of electricity and water desalination according to the specifications and standards approved by the electricity and water Authority.
Shaikh Nawaf also highlighted that Kingdom of Bahrain has a bright sun within 4000 and 7000 watts / hour per square meter every day and this is very suitable to make the cost of solar energy in the medium term competitive with conventional and other renewable energy sources to generate electricity, pointing out that Bahrain has been chosen as the Head of the Regional Centre for Renewable Energy and energy Efficiency (RCREEE).
The CEO of the authority was briefed on the infrastructure services on the island and the services provided by Electricity and Water Authority. He also highlighted that the authority would increase the water production on the island to become a total of 600 cubic meters per day and would connect the water network between the southern part and the northern part in order to increase reliability on the water network.
The authority’s CEO said that the authority would also maintain the generators at Hawar plant to rise the production of electricity for more than 7 MW, where the north part of the island has been linked with its southern part, increasing the reliability and efficiency of the electric grid, and also said that the authority had presented 7 tenders for the implementation of those projects.
The authority’s CEO said that what had been presented was only a short term solution, but as for the long-term there is an ambitious project for the authority to establish a plant for the production of electricity and water which works with renewable energies like the solar and wind energies to produce 5.5 megawatts of electricity. In addition, part of that energy will be used to produce 450 meters of cubic desalinated water in order to preserve the island from pollution and maintain its natural reserve.
The head of the Thai delegation pointed out that Bahrain has the suitable environment to produce the renewable energy, particularly in the field of solar and wind energies.
The Thai delegation expressed their thanks and appreciation for the authority’s CEO for that fruitful meeting.