News that a solar panel factory will be built in Bahrain at a cost of BD75.6M ($200m) is further indication of the gathering momentum in the Middle East solar sector. The new plant is expected to be ready by the end of 2011 & will create around 200 jobs. It is being spearheaded by the Nasser S Al Hajri Corp & MD Dr Ravi Pillai revealed the solar panels would be exported to Europe for domestic & industrial use. "We have invested in this venture because of our belief that the future is in alternative sources of energy," he said. He also hoped there would be a market for the solar panels in Bahrain. "We are looking at a long-term plan to market these panels in Bahrain & the other GCC countries," said Dr Pillai. The initial focus will be on Western markets & the factory is being built in co-operation with a Dutch company, which Dr Pillai declined to name. "We have to first look at the European market," he said, "the agreement with the European company is on a 'buy back' basis." That means the Dutch company has committed to buy solar panels from the Bahrain plant for the next five years. "We hope the facility will be up and running by the end of the year," added Dr Pillai. "We have already applied to the Commerce and Industry Ministry for a licence and have been told it should be available within a month." Meanwhile, he revealed the company was also planning a multi-million dollar, low-cost housing project in Bahrain. "We are talking to some investors and are in the final stages of discussions," he said, before adding that the modalities were being worked out and we shall make an announcement relatively soon. "We are looking at starting the project later this year." Dr Pillai is the founder of the Nasser S Al Hajri Corporation, an industrial construction contractor serving the Middle East. With the need for a focused point of reference for the entire PV industry in the Middle East and Gulf regions growing by the day, GulfSol 2010 is poised to become one of the most significant events on the solar exhibition calendar.
