DUBAI — Solar asset owners in the Middle East and around the world could face as much as $3000 per megawatt in unplanned maintenance costs per year.

The estimate was made by Wood Mackenzie, a leading global energy

research and consultancy, as part of its global forecast of $16bn worth of unplanned repair and maintenance related activities for solar asset owners over the next five years.

“Our data shows that the average project size in the MENA region is 124.5 MW. Thus, the stakes and costs are that much higher, further emphasizing the importance of having digital O&M capabilities in place for the region,” said Mina Mesbahi, Research Strategist at Solarplaza International B.V., organisers of the global Solar Asset Management conferences, with the MENA edition scheduled next month in Dubai.

“Utility solar asset management and O&M have undergone a myriad of changes in the last decade; from grid integration and energy storage, to wholesale market participation. As part of this transformation, digitalization has had an immense impact on how solar assets are managed and maintained. Artificial intelligence and advanced data analytics have enabled pattern recognition, machine learning, fleet performance analysis, predictive performance, and so forth,” added Mesbahi.

Innovative and data-driven asset management means having a solid understanding of a solar power plant’s data and its limitations so asset owners can contextualize it to make more informed and better ROI-driven decisions.

In an effort to pave the way for intelligent O&M and asset management, Meteocontrol, one of the world’s leading developers and providers of monitoring systems for photovoltaic power plants and solar parks, will be presenting on the topic at Solar Asset Management MENA 2019, taking place in Dubai on Nov. 17-18, 2019.

In addition, the attendees will be able to observe first-hand how Meteocontrol is supporting the latest technology advances in the solar industry and future-proofing the state of solar monitoring with the help of machine learning, integrated CMMS and process intelligence. To register for the conference, visit https://mena.solar-asset.management. — SG