On November 13, 2026, Saudi Electricity Procurement Company issued a qualification application document to global developers, and the eighth round of national renewable energy plan bidding was launched. This round has a total capacity of 3200 megawatts, including two photovoltaic projects and one wind power project. For companies that have long been interested in the Middle East new energy market, the document itself is not surprising. What is truly noteworthy is the project structure: photovoltaics and wind power are almost evenly matched, and a single photovoltaic section has reached the gigawatt level threshold for the first time.

Package and issue bids for three projects

This round of bidding is led and supervised by the Saudi Ministry of Energy and is under the National Renewable Energy Program. The three projects are Tumair Photovoltaic Independent Power Station located in Riyadh Province, with a capacity of 900 megawatts; East Al Amoah Photovoltaic Independent Power Station located in Asir Province, with a capacity of 1000 megawatts; And the Al Mazeraah wind power independent power station located in Mecca Province, with a capacity of 1300 megawatts. The total capacity of photovoltaics is 1900 megawatts, while that of wind power is 1300 megawatts, combining wind and solar power instead of relying solely on photovoltaics. As the Principal Buyer, Saudi Electricity Procurement Company is responsible for conducting preliminary research, organizing bidding, and signing power purchase agreements and energy storage service agreements with developers. Developers only need to coordinate with a single window.

First appearance of gigawatt section

The East Al Amoah project has a capacity of 1000 megawatts and is classified as a super power station in Saudi Arabia's bidding system. One bid section can withstand the bidding volume of many countries in a whole round. The Tumair project, with a capacity of 900 megawatts, is also on the threshold of large power plants. The two photovoltaic sections total 1900 megawatts, which means that the volume of Saudi Arabia's photovoltaic bidding in this round has significantly increased compared to before. For component, inverter, bracket, and EPC companies, the expansion of single segment scale means an increase in the complexity of supply and construction organization after winning the bid. However, for companies with experience in delivering large ground power stations, this is also a direct entry point into the Saudi market. Keywords: Middle East news and information, photovoltaics, new energy

The volume of wind power exceeds that of photovoltaics

Among the three projects in this round, the largest single capacity is not photovoltaics, but the Al Mazeraah wind power project in Mecca province, with a capacity of 1300 megawatts, which is larger than any of the two photovoltaic sections. This structure reveals the direction of Saudi Arabia's power adjustment: while promoting photovoltaics, simultaneously lifting up wind power installations. At present, Saudi Arabia still relies mainly on oil and gas power generation. The goal of the national renewable energy plan is to increase the installed capacity of renewable energy and energy storage systems in the energy structure to about 50% by 2030, and the specific progress will depend on the growth of electricity demand. The concentrated release of 3200 megawatts per round, like the eighth round, is the main means to achieve this goal.Editor/Gao Xue