Renewable Energy Sector Saudi Arabia - 1557 Words

The increasing need for new sources of energy in Saudi Arabia led the Saudi authorities to consider investing in the renewable energy sector. Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil producer and exporter, but its dominance in oil production threatens the country’s environment. Therefore, Investing in the renewable energy sector would be a good substitute of a polluting source of energy; moreover, it would lesser the expensive costs of oil-based energy. However, turning Saudi Arabia into the renewable energy sector would require profound adjustment in Saudi Arabia’s politics, infrastructure, organized planning, and professional maneuver in order for the project to be feasible and successful. The development of the renewable energy in the†¦show more content†¦The study looks at diverse ways of empowering the public by increasing the economic welfare of the country in terms of investing in the renewable energy sector, introducing the concept of â€Å"Green Growth† (OECD, 2012). Saudi Arabia is the largest consumer of petroleum in the Middle East. 60% of the primary energy consumed in Saudi Arabia is petroleum-based and the rest being natural gas. The daily consumption of petroleum stands at 2.4 million barrels. This occurred mainly due to the strong economic and industrial growth that the country is experiencing and the subsidized petroleum prices (Smil, 54). The increasing growth in the level of consumption was due to the direct burning of crude oil to generate power, and the use of natural gas in the production of petrochemical products (Smil, 56). The Saudi government estimates that the domestic energy consumption will exceed 8 million barrels per day by the year 2030, unless there is any improvement concerning the increase in energy efficiency (Sunderasan, 2011). Saudi Arabia has a large reserve for hydrocarbon and a heavily subsidized energy sector, and this prompts the question whether there is a sustainable market for renewable energy. The following graph illustrates the increasing use of oil in the consumption trend on exports. Source: