The Saudi General Bureau of Statistics has released the "2025 Renewable Energy Statistics Report", revealing a remarkable set of data: by the end of 2025, the cumulative investment in renewable energy projects in operation in Saudi Arabia reached 36.11 billion Saudi riyals, approximately 9.64 billion US dollars, of which newly operational projects contributed 16.27 billion riyals, approximately 4.34 billion US dollars. The installed capacity has jumped from 6.55GW in 2024 to 12.3GW, a year-on-year increase of 88%. From Al Rass to Wadi Al Dawasir, five solar energy projects will be put into operation in 2025, and Saudi Arabia's renewable energy transformation is moving from planning to large-scale implementation.

Five major projects are put into operation in a centralized manner

The five solar energy projects that will be put into operation in 2025 are distributed in multiple regions of Saudi Arabia, with a total installed capacity of 5762 megawatts, and are expected to supply clean electricity to approximately 2.1 million homes. The Al Rass project ranks first with an investment of 5.52 billion riyals, Al Kahfa with an investment of 4.06 billion riyals, Al Hanakiyah with an investment of 3.13 billion riyals, Saad with an investment of approximately 3.11 billion riyals, and Wadi Al Dawasir with an investment of 450 million riyals. The total investment in the Al Rass and Al Kahfa projects reached 9.58 billion riyals, accounting for nearly 60% of the newly added investment that year. The total investment of five projects exceeds 16.2 billion riyals, bringing the total number of renewable energy projects in operation in Saudi Arabia to 15.

Global competitiveness of electricity cost per kilowatt hour

The cost competitiveness of renewable energy in Saudi Arabia has significantly improved. The weighted average cost of electricity generation for projects in operation in 2025 is 6.60 halala per kilowatt hour, approximately 1.76 cents per kilowatt hour. The Al Hanakiyah project has a minimum of 6.30 halal per kilowatt hour, approximately 1.68 cents, which is the lowest for the entire site. The Al Rass project has a rate of 6.34 halal per kilowatt hour, Al Kahfa has a rate of approximately 6.64 halal per kilowatt hour, Saad has a rate of approximately 6.71 halal per kilowatt hour, and Wadi Al Dawasir has a rate of 7.0 halal per kilowatt hour. The cost per kilowatt hour of electricity in Harara is at a highly competitive level among global photovoltaic projects. The core driving force for low cost comes from Saudi Arabia's superior sunshine resources, economies of scale in large-scale development, and mature financing environment. Keywords: Middle East news and information, solar energy projects, clean energy

Accelerating the 2030 Goals

Saudi Arabia has elevated renewable energy to a national strategic level, and the 2030 Vision explicitly proposes to increase the proportion of renewable energy in the power structure to 50% by 2030. The operational installation of 12.3GW by the end of 2025 is just the first step towards achieving this goal. Consortium such as ACWA Power has signed a $8.3 billion 15GW renewable energy purchase agreement and is currently underway, with plans to put it into operation gradually from 2027 to 2028. By 2025, five new projects will be put into operation to meet the electricity demand of approximately 939000 housing units, an increase of 82.31% compared to 2024. The Saudi renewable energy market is shifting from policy driven to investment driven, with a cumulative investment of 36.11 billion riyals proving that renewable energy has become a mature asset class with stable expected returns. For Chinese suppliers engaged in photovoltaic modules, inverters, and tracking brackets, this is a clear structural window. With the advancement of ACWA Power's 15GW project, the peak of equipment bidding is expected to gradually arrive.Editor/Gao Xue