BY: Hana Saada
ALGIERS- The Director General of the Renewable Energy Cluster, Boukhalfa Yaïci, referred to Algeria’s potential in terms of renewable energies, pointing to the project to build 15 solar power plants with a total capacity of 2000 MW (Megawatts), for which the national and international call for tenders was launched last February by the Sonelgaz group.
Speaking on radio channel 3, Mr. Yaïci said that Algeria has a huge reservoir of renewable energies. In this regard, he cited the latest figures from the World Bank, according to which the country’s reserves are estimated at 169 TW (Terawatts) for solar energy and 25 TW for wind power.
The Managing Director of the Renewable Energy Cluster discussed the construction of 2000 MW solar power plants and the number of jobs that the launch of the first phase of the project will create. “There will be the creation of 10,000 direct jobs from the launch of the first tranche with a capacity of 2000 MW”, he revealed.
Emphasizing that this investment, worth 2 billion dollars, will also benefit national companies, he recalled that the obligation to reach the integration rate set by the public authorities, thanks to “the components available locally, including solar panels, cables, and also the services that can be provided by Algerian companies”.
“We held meetings with the Minister of Energy and the CEO of Sonelgaz, who stressed the President of the Republic’s desire to implement the strategy for the development of renewable energies”, he said.
