Geographic Survey Project for Renewable Energy Sites was launched in Saudi Arabia in a ceremony held in Riyadh

At a ceremony on Monday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, officially started the Geographic Survey Project for Renewable Energy Sites in Saudi Arabia. Saudi businesses were given the project contracts to deploy 1,200 solar and wind energy measurement stations throughout the Kingdom. The initiative, which is a component of the National Renewable Energy Program, is unmatched in terms of its geographic scope globally, according to a statement from the minister of energy. He stated that all of the Kingdom will be surveyed over 850,000 square kilometers as part of the initiative, with the exception of populated areas, places with sand dunes, and airspace restrictions. He explained that this area is similar to the geographical area of entire nations, like roughly the combined territories of Germany and Spain or the United Kingdom and France. He said that no other nation has ever carried out a geographic study of this kind on such a large scale. According to Prince Abdulaziz, the initiative will help determine which parts of the Kingdom have the greatest potential for renewable energy project development, taking into account both the quantity and priority of available resources. The minister stated that in order to find appropriate locations for renewable energy projects, the stations will initially examine the allocated area before expanding into all parts of the Kingdom. The project's stations will then be relocated and erected at these locations in order to consistently supply all the data needed for carrying out renewable energy projects with a high degree of precision. The minister clarified that solar energy measurement stations will record ground-level data on the following: dust and pollutant deposition rates, ground-reflected radiation (albedo), ambient temperature, rainfall levels, relative humidity, and atmospheric pressure. These stations will also be outfitted with cutting-edge measurement devices. Concurrently, wind energy monitoring stations will be erected at various elevations, reaching up to 120 meters, to monitor wind direction and speed as well as surrounding temperature, air pressure, and relative humidity. The minister said that cutting-edge technology, the best quality standards, and international practices will all be used in the data collection process. In order to evaluate and rank sites according to their suitability for renewable energy projects, Prince Abdulaziz stated that the project involves setting up a platform at the Ministry of Energy to monitor, record, and transmit measurement data around-the-clock. This will allow the data to be digitally analyzed and processed using artificial intelligence technologies. The project will also primarily help achieve the Liquid Fuel Displacement Program's objectives by reducing reliance on liquid fuel in the production of electricity, as well as the optimal energy mix targets for electricity production, which call for renewable energy sources to make up roughly 50% of the energy mix by 2030.