Renewable Energy

Equipment and workforce key for Saudi renewables

April 29, 2025, 9:01 AM

Saudi Arabia's 130 GW renewable target by 2030 hinges on securing equipment and local expertise for its growing solar and wind farms — Saudi Arabia's 130GW renewable target by 2030 hinges on securing equipment and local expertise for its growing solar and wind farms

Supply of equipment is crucial
Local Saudi expertise needed
Ambitious renewable targets

Nacelles and blades, battery energy storage systems (BESS) and high voltage direct current (HVDC) cables, solar modules and wafers.

A surge in large-scale renewable projects – such as the 2GW Al Shuaibah 2 solar project and 1.5GW Dawadmi wind farm – means the kingdom needs to secure equipment and expertise if it is to come close to hitting a target of 130GW of renewable capacity by 2030. Shortages of both are becoming a growing concern in the kingdom, industry experts say.

“The key constraints for the growth of the grid will be the supply of equipment: power transformers, subsea cables, HVDC and BESS equipment all have, in terms of years, very long lead times,” Andrew Shaw, vice president of the electrical division at Alfanar Group, told a conference in Dubai this month.

For the world’s second-largest oil producer, wind and solar development are central to its strategy to reduce fossil fuel reliance. Under Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia aims for renewables to make up 50 percent of the energy mix by the end of the decade.

As of late 2024, the country’s installed renewable capacity stood at only 4.5GW, with more than 9GW under construction, according to the latest Dii MENA Energy Outlook. Another 2GW of photovoltaic capacity and 3GW of wind are under development, while more than 14GW has been announced.

Yet the momentum could falter without local industrial capability.

To address this, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) has announced joint ventures with Chinese companies Envision, Jinko Solar and TCL Zhonghuan to manufacture wind turbines, solar modules and wafers domestically.

Additional deals to produce steel towers for wind are hoped to contribute more than $290 million to GDP and create hundreds of jobs.

Saudi strategy aims to localise 75 percent of the renewable energy value chain by 2030, including nacelle and blade assembly, tower fabrication and grid infrastructure.

Fragmented and import-reliant supply chains expose emerging markets such as Saudi Arabia to delays and price volatility.

To meet its targets, Mena must add 40GW of solar and 23GW of wind by 2030. “Existing and planned installations are insufficient,” the Dii report says.

Localisation also means finding or training skilled personnel. GWEC estimates the country will need around 2,000 wind technicians by 2028. Institutions such as King Abdullah University of Science and Technology and King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy are rolling out workforce training programmes to bridge the gap.

“There’s a big push in the region for localisation, not just for localisation sake but because the capacity increase is required to support the needs of our customers and utilities and equipment,” Shaw said.