Solar power project is taking shape in Oman

Jacob Saper, senior manager of Global Strategy (Business Development and Operations) at Astonfield, will be speaking at the International Conference on Harnessing Technology (ICHT) 2011 tomorrow.

At the conference, Saper will focus his presentation on optimising the relationship between cost and quality to deliver affordable world-class solar solutions to Oman and the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Oman has the potential to become a regional hub in solar power at a time when global players are looking to invest in new markets outside Europe.

As part of its commitment to capitalise on its terrific solar potential, Oman’s leadership has developed a solar pilot programme to develop local knowledge and a track record ahead of scale up.

Key to ensuring the long-term success of Oman’s solar initiatives will be partnerships with market leaders like Astonfield Renewable Resources, who are familiar with the unique challenges of deploying solar in emerging markets.

Flexible formula

Astonfield is the largest multi-modality renewable energy company in South Asia, with a project portfolio of over 1,000 MW of renewable energy.

Led by a world-class management team with extensive experience in financing and developing power projects in emerging markets around the world, Astonfield Renewable Resources’ execution prowess is second to none.

"With strong solar resources and progressive government support, Oman has the potential to become a solar leader with successful collaboration from the private sector," explains Ameet Shah, co-chairman at Astonfield Renewable Resources.

"Astonfield has developed a proven, flexible formula that emphasises localisation and cost-efficiency without sacrificing quality through bottom up collaboration between experienced local engineering teams and top-tier global technology providers."

Astonfield’s technology selection is extensive and thorough, and addresses price comparisons as well as quality and local climate concerns, making this the company a perfect fit for new solar markets in the region.

"The modules we select have to be battle tested and well-suited to the regions in which we work," comments Shah.

"We only use modules that have been successfully performing in the field in other similar projects and manufactured by companies with strong balance sheets and warranties as these modules need to perform at high levels for 25 years."

Cost and quality

Cost and quality are only part of the equation for successful solar installations. Swift and efficient project execution is one of Astonfield Renewable Resources’ primary objectives in order to get power pumping to the grid quickly.

Astonfield Renewable Resources’ technology partners have extensive experience installing utility-scale solar power plants across Europe and emerging markets.

These technology partnerships paired with Astonfield’s unparalleled experience developing solar power plants in emerging markets and dessert conditions makes it one of the most qualified solar developers to deliver rapid deployment of high-quality, low-cost solar in the Gulf Cooperation Council.

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