MEA Power Industry

MEA Power Market Analysis

The Middle-East and Africa Power Market is expected to register a CAGR of greater than 3% during the forecast period.

• Thermal power is expected to continue its dominance with largest share in power generation, owing to the increase in the share of natural gas in power generation.
• By 2050, the electricity demand of the Middle-East is expected to triple in comparison to 2018. Moreover, with a significant share in African countries without electricity, vast opportunities are anticipated in the future of the power market.
• Saudi Arabia is leading the power market with highest electricity consumption. With coming projects and increasing demand, the nation is expected to dominate in the forecast period also.

MEA Power Market Trends

Thermal Sources to Dominate the Market

• Power generation uses multiple fuels ranging from fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas to renewables like wind and solar. Thermal sources, including coal, gas, and oil, are expected to dominate the market due to the increasing share of natural gas.
• In 2018, Middle-East and Africa had around 130 thousand million tons of oil reserves and more than 3000 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves. The huge oil and gas reserves are expected to feed thermal plants in the long run.
• Hassyan coal-fired power plant is under construction in Dubai. The plant will be having four units, each with a capacity of 600 MW. The plant is expected to be operational by 2021, adding 2.4 GW of power generation to the grid.
• In 2020, Hyundai Engineering & Construction Consortium secured an order to construct a combined thermal power plant with an investment of USD 730 million, adding capacity of 1300 MW in Algeria.
• In 2019, Egypt signed a deal with ACWA to build a USD 23 billion natural gas fired power plant with a capacity of 2250 MW. The plant is expected to be operational by 2023. This significant growth in thermal power generation is expected in the forecast period.
• Thermal sources generated more than 1900 TWh of electricity in Middle-East and Africa in 2018. The share is expected to grow in the forecast period with upcoming projects and growing demand.

Saudi Arabia to Dominate the Market

• Saudi Arabia is leading the entire Middle-East and Africa markets in terms of electricity generation. The electricity generation had increased from 337 TWh in 2014 to 383 TWh in 2018.
• With increased power demand and parallelly increasing investment in both renewable and thermal energy sources, Saudi Arabia has several projects which are expected to be operational in the forecast period.
• In 2020, Saudi Arabia initiated the tender process for four solar projects with a combined capacity of 1.2 GW. The projects are expected to be constructed in the forecast period and adding a significant share in renewable energy.
• In 2019, Power China signed an engineering procurement construction contract with the Saudi Electricity Company for the natural gas-fired PP13 power plant. The project includes six gas turbines, six waste heat boilers, two steam turbines, and two air cooling islands. It has a generation capacity of 1,960 megawatts.
• Saudi Arabia is increasing power generation through both thermal and renewable sources. The country is also looking forward to increasing its share in nuclear energy in the future.

MEA Power Industry Overview

The Middle-East and Africa power market is fragmented. The major companies include Jinko Solar Holding Co Ltd, ACWA POWER BARKA SAOG, Inc, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd, and Saudi Electricity Company.

MEA Power Market Leaders