Sungrow, a leading global inverter solution supplier for renewables, has announced that it has been awarded the contract to power the 800 MWp Al Kharsaa project in Qatar with its featured 1500V string inverter SG250HX.

The third-largest solar plant in the world and the first utility-scale solar project in the country, Al Kharsaa is on track to be fully operational before the 2022 World Cup.

A consortium of Marubeni and Total are developing the project after winning the country’s first solar tender, benefiting from a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) to supply electricity to the offtaker Kahramaa.

Located 80 km west of Doha, the project is coming up over a 1,000 hectare land in a tropical desert and featuring ample sunlight whereas high temperatures and strong wind.

It will represent around 10 per cent of electricity peak demand of the country and reduce the carbon dioxide emissions of Qatar by 26 million tonnes during its lifetime, said the statement from Sungrow.

It will supply the world’s most powerful 1500V string inverter SG250HX, which is resilient in harsh conditions given the IP66 and C5 protection capability and smart forced air-cooling technology.

Compatible with bifacial modules and tracking systems, the solution allows considerable yields by leveraging the sunlight resources onsite.

It enables flexible block design allowing up to 6.75 MW, significantly saving the initial investment and streamlining O&M. As one of the best-selling PV inverter solutions, SG250HX is expected to be deployed over 3 GW by the end of 2020, it added.

On the contract win, Vice President James Wu said: “We are proud to pioneer the first utility-scale solar project in Qatar with the best of our expertise and prop up the national commitment towards a more sustainable society.”

“We’d like to explore more competitive projects to unlock values for stakeholders in the Middle East,” stated Wu.

Sungrow Power has already completed work on a 500 MW project in Oman and a 900 MW project in Dubai, he added.