UAE’s Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has launched the second phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park of 200MW capacity in Dubai.

Based on the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model, the new solar park will be the first ever and also the largest solar power project in the region according to the public service infrastructure company.

It will support the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 by generating 7% of the city’s total electricity output from renewable sources by 2020, 25% by 2030, and trebling that to 75% by 2050.

DEWA’s new solar energy project will cover the electricity needs of 50,000 households in Dubai with clean energy, as reported by Khaleej Times.

The second phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park upon completion is expected to cut down 6.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions each year in line with the city’s drive towards clean and green energy.

DEWA MD and CEO Saeed Mohammed said: “We will continue to launch clean and renewable energy projects, to contribute to our people’s happiness, and enhance the leading position of the UAE. Our goal is to make the UAE one of the best countries in the world by the time we celebrate our Golden Jubilee in 2021.”

Last month, DEWA had announced its plans to invest $2.72bn to construct 97 new 132/11 kilovolt (kV) substations at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and Hassyan among other energy facilities in the next three years. The project will be carried out to meet the increasing demand for electricity in the city.