Saudi Electricity, Japanese firm launch Saudi solar plant

An executive at Saudi Electricity has said that a joint venture with Japan's Showa Shell Sekiyu to operate a 500-kilowatt (kW) solar power plant in Saudi Arabia has begun, Reuters has reported. Amer Al-Swaha, head of Independent Power Producer (IPP) projects at SEC added that the pilot plant, located on Farasan Island, southwest Saudi Arabia, is expected to reach full capacity later this month. "The power load in the island is more than 25 megawatts (MW). This (project) is modest but it is only a start and we will evaluate it to see whether to expand," according to Al-Swaha.