MENA region’s largest solar panel factory launched in Saudi city of Tabuk

Saudi Arabia on Wednesday launched the first phase of a factory for the production of solar panels in the Industrial City of Tabuk.

The factory, the largest of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, has investments amounting to SR700 million. The total area of the plant, with a capacity of 1.2 gigawatts, is more than 27,000 square meters.

Addressing the inaugural ceremony, Deputy Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Osama Al-Zamil said the plant aims to enhance investment in solar energy and diversify energy sources. It also seeks to enable integration with relevant government agencies and the private sector represented by industrial investors to support industries related to renewable and sustainable energy throughout the Kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Al-Zamil noted that the presence of such factories in the city of Tabuk in particular has a strategic dimension, especially due to its proximity to major giga projects such as NEOM and the Red Sea, in addition to the availability of qualified national manpower to work in various jobs available at these factories.

This is one of the highly advanced factories in the field of automation in the Kingdom, with production mechanisms that rely on machines and employ the latest international technology in the field.

The Kingdom, within the framework of its Vision 2030, is heading toward building a sustainable renewable energy sector that supports its economic growth, especially with its appropriate geographical and climatic factors to benefit from renewable energy sources. This required industrial integration to reinforce building this promising sector by attracting investments and encouraging partnerships between the government and private sectors.