Multicriteria Decision-Making for Evaluating Solar Energy Source of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Saudi Arabia generates more than 98% of its electricity through hydrocarbon resources. To reduce the consumption of fossil fuel resources and protect the environment, the government of Saudi Arabia is planning to make renewable energy an essential part of its energy mix. In this study, due to the country’s abundant solar potential, solar energy has been selected as the energy source to generate renewable energy in Saudi Arabia. The two solar energy technologies, photovoltaic (PV) and solar thermal, have been analyzed in three different locations within the country. Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques were used to rank the cities for each of the technologies. The SAW(Simple Additive Weighting)-AHP(Analytic Hierarchy Process) MCDM method based on climate, environmental, technical, economic, and social has been adopted to analyze the suitability of each technology for all locations. To assign weights to the criteria AHP method was used, while to rank the technologies, SAW was used. The results show that for the PV technology, Abha ranked 1st with a performance score of 91%, making it the most suitable location, followed by Jeddah with 83%. While for solar thermal technologies, Jeddah is the most suitable location, with a performance score of 96%, followed by Abha with 91%. The PV systems generated a maximum of 11,019 MWh in Abha, while the solar thermal produced maximum of 14,000 MWh in Jeddah. Overall, solar thermal technology outperformed PV technology in Saudi Arabia due to the country’s higher temperature. The analysis of photovoltaic and solar thermal technologies in this study provides valuable insight for the government of Saudi Arabia in identifying the best site for solar energy technologies in the country.

Optimization of Concentrated Solar Power Systems with Thermal Storage for Enhanced Efficiency and Cost-Effectiveness in Thermal Power Plants

“…The identified MCDM criteria are shown in Table V. The AHP-SAW combination [13] was used in the MCDM technique applied in this study. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to assign appropriate weights to each criterion [22].…”

“…While technologies such as geothermal and fuel cells show potential, they currently involve substantial expenses and are not yet regarded as feasible substitutes. With an average of approximately 3,000 hours of sunshine per year, the country possesses abundant solar energy resources [13]. This high solar insolation creates an ideal environment for the deployment of solar energy technologies.…”

Energy Efficiency in Heat Pumps and Solar Collectors: Case of Slovakia

“…In Saudi Arabia, the government is planning to make renewable energy an essential part of its energy mix. Here, Alanazi and Alanazi evaluated the climate, environmental, technical, economic and social aspects, as adopted to analyse the suitability of PV technology, ranking its performance at the level around 90% [12].…”