Yousif Al Ali highlights resilience and potential of renewables

Rapidly decreasing costs, competitive technology and round the clock availability of renewable energy is establishing it as a strong contender despite the challenges of COVID-19, Yousif Al Ali, Executive Director, Clean Energy told REGlobal.

Speaking on the impact of COVID-19, Al Ali said that the sector is experiencing accelerated growth, despite the difficulties of the pandemic: “Renewable energy technology today, proposes a marginal cost of electricity that is very competitive compared to fossil fuels.”

Highlighting Masdar’s global and diverse project portfolio, Al Ali stated that competitive pricing and demand in strong markets such as the US and Central Asia is contributing to Masdar’s growth:

“The US renewable energy sector is an important growth market for us. This market allows us to deploy capital at scale and develop large capacities with shorter lead times,” said Al Ali.
Regionally, Al Ali highlighted the key role that Masdar is playing in helping the UAE to realize its energy goals and plans of tapping into the potential of hydrogen. Looking ahead, he anticipated that energy storage will be included in all solar and wind projects in the coming years.

“Many interesting opportunities are underway in the renewable energy sector, from a “rebirth” of concentrated solar power to other energy storage solutions. As we near the end of a transformative year, we will continue evolving our strategies in line with market transformations and the energy sector needs.”

Read the full interview here.