The Algerian Challenge between the Dependence on Fossil Fuels and its Huge Potential in Renewable Energy, did not allow it to embark fully on a programme of any sort of renewable energies. Its Minister of Energy however announced about a year ago that it has adopted an updated development of National Renewable Energy programme in Algeria. This programme increases the targeted installed capacity from renewable sources by 2030 from 12 GW to 22 GW, with a view to diversifying Algeria’s power production by increasing generation from sustainable sources and preserving fossil fuel resources. After a first launch back in 2011, the latest version of this programme was reviewed and recently published again. Here it is below.
National Renewable Energy programme – Algeria (2015 – 2030)
The national Programme for the Development of Renewable Energy in its updated version by the Ministry of Energy came just to be adopted by the government.
Indeed, the integration of renewable energies into the national energy mix constitutes a major challenge in the preservation of fossil resources, the diversification of electricity production ways and the contribution to sustainable development.
In the programme for development of renewable energies 2011-2030 adopted by the government in February 2011, renewable energies are placed at the heart of energy and economy policies led in Algeria.
This programme saw a first phase dedicated to the achievement of pilot and test projects of the different available technologies, during which relevant elements concerning technological evolutions in the concerned sectors appeared in the energy arena and led to the review of this programme.
Among these new elements, we should name :
– A better knowledge of the national potential in renewable energies, in particular for the solar energy and the wind energy, further to the hired studies;
– The reduction in the costs of the photovoltaic and wind sectors which assert themselves more and more on the market to establish viable sectors to be considered;
– Costs still high of the CSP sector ( thermal solar ) inferring a very slow growth of the development of this market worldwide;
– The perfection of a coherent and attractive national regulations for investors.
The review of this programme is on the large-scale development of photovoltaic and wind fields, on the introduction of biomass field ( waste valuation), of the cogeneration and geothermal, and also the postponement, to 2021, of the development of the solar thermal (CSP).
The renewable consistency of the program to realize for national market needs over the period 2015-2030 is 22 000 MW, among whom more than 4500 MW will be realized before 2020.
The division of this program by technology sector, appears as follows:
– Solar Photovoltaic : 13 575 MW
– Wind : 5010 MW
– Solar thermal : 2000 MW
– Biomass : 1 000 MW
– Cogeneration : 400 MW
– Geothermal : 15 MW
Achieving this programme will allow to reach by 2030 a part of renewables of about 27 % in the national report of electric production.
The volume of natural gas saved by the 22.000 MW of renewable energy, will be about 300 Billions M3, so a volume equivalent to 8 times the national consumption in 2014. According to the actual regulation, the realization of this programme is opened to state-owned and private investors local and foreigners. The implementation of this programme benefits from substantial and multiform state contribution which intervenes through the National Fund for Renewable Energies and Cogeneration (FNERC), feed from the sampling of 1 % from oil fees.
A mechanism of encouragement based on the guaranteed price lists of purchase is set up by the regulations. So, the producer of renewable energy benefits from price lists of purchase which are guaranteed for 20 years for the installations in Photovoltaic and in wind energy.
The benefiting sectors guaranteed price lists of purchase will be financed by the FNERC at the level of 50 % to 90 % of the capital cost according to the technology and the sector held.
The fallout from this program will be very significant in terms of job creation, industrialization, technological development and acquisition of know-how, so contributing to the growth and to the economic modernization of the country as well as to the environmental protection.
