Kuwait could save at least $25m a day by 2030 if it implemented electricity and water efficiency and saving measures, the MEED Kuwait Energy & Water Efficiency Conference has been told.
About 350,000 barrels a day (b/d) of liquid fuels are now being burned in Kuwaiti power stations and this figure could rise to 800,000 b/d in 2030 if present demand trends continue, assistant undersecretary of planning and training at the Ministry of Electricity & Water (MEW) Meshan al-Otaibi said.
But existing technology and demand management could cut the growth in liquid fuel consumption by half, MEW advisor Mike Wood told the conference.
That could mean oil consumption in power stations would be no more than 500,000 b/d in 2030. This would allow at least 250,000 b/d more to be sold as exports that year than would be possible without electricity and water saving measures. Based on present market prices, that is equivalent to more than $9bn in a full year, or about $25m a day.
The conference was told that Kuwait has plans to introduce a range of energy-saving measures including:
- Higher tariffs for heavy electricity consumers
- Higher sustainability standards in new and existing buildings
- The introduction of decentralised solar power and
- New systems for measuring and managing power use in Kuwaiti buildings.
The conference was told that peak power demand is forecast to hit 13,000MW this summer compared with installed capacity of about 14,600MW. Al-Otaibi said that, on present trends, it would reach 30,000MW in 2030.
The conference was told that Kuwait is preparing to meet soaring power and water demand with plans to double electricity and water capacity to 30,000MW and 1,000m g/d respectively by 2022.
The Kuwait Energy & Water Efficiency Conference is being held in the Jumeirah Messilah Beach hotel in Kuwait City. The conference is supported by the Ministry of Electricity & Water and endorsed by the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS).
Drake & Scull and Kimmco are conference sponsors. Commercial Bank of Kuwait (CBK) and Mushrif Trading & Contracting Company are networking sponsors.
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