The Tunisian government has recently announced it plans to invest $1 billion towards the installation of 1,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy in 2017, writes Climate Action.
According to the Energy General Direction of the Tunisian Ministry of Energy and Mines, 650 MW of the total 1,000 MW will come from solar photovoltaic (PV) power, with the remaining 350 being supplied by wind energy.
At the same time, the private sector plans to invest a further 600 million into the development of renewable energy capacity in 2017, the Ministry added.
30 procent from renewables in 2030
Under new plans, Tunisia has committed to generating 30 per cent of its electricity from renewable energy sources in 2030.
Last year, a total of 579 gigawatt hours (GWh) of renewable electricity was produced in the country, with a combined capacity of 342 MW.
The initial phase of the 1,000 MW of installations has already begun.
In the second phase of its energy strategy, the nation intends to install 1,250 MW between 2021 and 2030.
5,7 gigawatts in the pipeline
The news follows the findings from a recent report stating the entire Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have more than 5.7 gigawatts (GW) of solar energy capacity in the pipeline.
The Middle East Solar Industry Association (MESIA) report “Solar Outlook Report 2017” found that eight countries in the region have more than 4,050 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) power capacity under development this year, bringing the total solar power capacity in the pipeline to over 5.7 GW.
