Utilities Middle East – August 2019

T

he high upfront cost of distributed
solar energy has long dampened its
prospects in the GCC, despite the
region’s high solar irradiance. But the
clouds may have fi nally cleared with an inno-
vative business model that is brightening the
prospects of solar energy.
Technology breakthroughs have already
lowered the cost of utility scale solar photovol-
taics (PVs), which has tumbled about 75% since
2009, thus furthering uptake across the Middle
East and North Africa. Industry projections
now point to a similar trajectory in uptake for
distributed energy as the solar leasing model
gains wider acceptance within the commercial
and industrial segment of the energy sector.
“When I look forward fi ve years, I see a sea
of solar panels. I see huge awareness of the eco-
nomic benefi ts and the environmental benefi ts
f o r b u s i n e s s e s t o m a k e a c h a n g e ,” s a y s J e r e m y
Crane, CEO of UAE-headquartered Yellow Door
Energy.
“The distributed energy industry is going to
continue to grow as rapidly as it has for the last

It is now possible that as energy needs grow here, the

new demand can be satisfied locally for those businesses

without the need for great growth or great expansion. Or

that distributed energy will be able to compliment greed

infrastructure through storage, demand management,

or through dispatch commands.”

Jeremy Crane, Yellow Door Energy

fi ve years. Looking forward, we see the potential

for several billion dollars’ worth of investments

in the region’s distributed energy sub-sector.

“In the next fi ve years, we see the energy

market evolving signifi cantly. It is now possi-

ble that as the need for energy increases, the

new demand can be satisfi ed locally for those

businesses without the need for great growth

or great expansion. Distributed energy will

b e a b l e t o c o m p l e m e n t g r i d i n f r a s t r u c t u r e

through storage, demand management, or

through dispatch commands.”

For Crane, an energy enthusiast with more

than 20 years of global experience within the

utility industry, there is even more reason to

be optimistic about the future of distributed

energy. Yellow Door Energy, the company he

co-founded with Adenium Energy Capital in

2015 to fi l l e x i s t i n g e n e r g y g a p s i n t h e M i d d l e

Eastern solar market, is headed for greater

expansion after securing $65mn funding from

global investors early this year.

In an interview with Utilities Middle East last

month, Crane says that this is one of the largest

3.96 MWp

Wheeling

Solar Project

Wadi Al Ash

Valley, Jordan

20 Utilities Middle East / August 2019 http://www.utilities-me.com

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