Special to WorldTribune.com

ABU DHABI — The United Arab Emirates has launched the world’s
largest solar power plant.

Shams-1 was designed to generate 100 megawatts of solar power, which
comprised 10 percent of global renewable energy.

The $600 million facility, inaugurated on March 17 in Abu Dhabi, generated power through mirrors or lenses as part of photovoltaic technology.

“Shams-1 reinforces Abu Dhabi’s commitment to investing and deploying renewable energy both locally and internationally,” Masdar chief executive officer Sultan Al Jabar said.

The UAE’s Masdar has been teamed with France’s Total and Spain’s Abengoa Solar for the so-called concentrated solar power plant, meant to generate electricity for 20,000 homes.

Officials said the UAE, with a 68 percent stake in the market, became the first country in the world to produce renewable energy.

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