The Middle East and North Africa Concentrated Solar Power Knowledge and Innovation Programme – MENA CSP KIP – was launched by the World Bank at the end of 2016, for a period of three years.
This programme aims to promote investments in concentrated solar power technologies in the region, for both Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) and Concentrated Solar Heat (CSH). The programme has three main activities:
Technical assistance
The CSH component is mainly orientated towards the industrial sector, given its strong thermal production potential. An online questionnaire was sent out to 150 manufacturers, followed by direct interviews with 33 of the respondents, to identify the industrial sites with the greatest potential, according to specific criteria (the criteria being technical, economic and with the greatest scope for the use of these technologies).
Subsequently, in-depth investigations were carried out to choose two industrial sites. Technical feasibility studies for the integration of concentrated solar thermal power were then carried out so as to best adapt thermal production to the sites’ specific needs.
A second study of an industrial textile site, which used fuel oil as the main source of energy, led to a concentrated solar power installation with an area of 2,500 m² of solar collector and a solar fraction of 14.2%. This system provided a payback time of between 6 and 10 years.
Capacity Building
A webinar was organized in December 2019 on the theme ‘Solar Heat for Industry in Morocco and Tunisia’ in which more than 150 people participated.
An online training was also organized for the benefit of national technical operators (designers, manufacturers, engineers, etc.) during the period 8–10 June 2020.
Communications
Tunisia and those countries of the Middle East and North Africa region participating in the programme held several seminars and workshops to present the latest developments in technology on a global scale and demonstrate the viability of the projects in operation.
The final conference of the programme took place, online, on April 1st – 2nd , 2020.
For more information on the programme, please go to the MENA CSP KIP webpage: MENA CSP KIP.