英闻天下——419 Middle East's Largest Solar Plant Opens

 　　Shams¹ 1, which opened on March 17th is Abu Dhabi's latest step towards achieving seven per cent renewable energy production by 2020. By that date, Abu Dhabi plans to produce 1,500 mega watts² of electricity from solar power alone. Various types of solar power plants are being considered throughout the Emirate as well as nuclear power.

 

　　Unlike photovoltaic solar technology or the solar panels often seen on roof tops, at Shams 1, electricity is generated from the heat of the sun rather than from sunlight. Yousif Al Ali, general manager at Shams Power Company explains that Shams 1 is the only solar power plant in the world that uses booster heaters to increase the temperature, thus increasing the amount of power generated.

 

　　"Shams Power plant will produce around 100 mega watts and based on the average power consumption in the country, that 100 mega watts will be enough to power around twenty thousand houses in the area. This project will also help us to avoid producing emissions⁴ of carbon dioxide. This project is registered with the United Nations as an emission³ reduction project under the CDM Mechanism⁵ and it will reduce emissions by about 175-thousand tons of CO2 per year and this amount of CO2 reduction is equivalent to planting 1.5 million trees or removing around 15-thousand cars from our streets."

 

　　Despite Abu Dhabi's oil wealth, Yousif Al Ali says the Emirate is committed to finding other sources of energy including solar and nuclear.

 

　　"The demand for power is going to double during the next decade in Abu Dhabi. To cater⁶ for all this need we need to have alternative sources of fuel. That's why Abu Dhabi is now working on diversifying⁷ its sources of power."

 

　　Vahid Fotuhi, president of the Emirates Solar Industry Association, says Shams 1 is an excellent example in the region, but still faces many obstacles.

 

　　"Shams 1 is great because it's the largest of its kind in the region and one of the largest in the world. It has the unique feature of being able to generate clean energy through gas boosters - even when the sun has set. The flip⁸ side is that it needs more unique conditions in order to operate well, in that it needs clear blue skies with no sand and no haze⁹ which as those of us who live in this region know that it's not always the case. And the other issue is that the cost of this is typically higher than it is for other technologies such as PV (photovoltaic)."

 

　　Vahid Fotuhi explains that the plummeting¹⁰ cost of solar power was leading to increased demands in the Middle East. Five years ago, one megawatt of power produced by photovoltaic solar technology was five US dollars; today it is less than two US dollars.

 

　　"As supply continues to dwindle¹¹ and as the prices of oil and gas skyrocket, we see that there has been renewed interest in solar and at the same time the price of solar has gone the other way. In the last five years alone, the price of photovoltaic panels has dropped by 80 per cent, so this has opened up new markets and new applications for solar."

 

　　Abu Dhabi is set to open the equivalent of two solar power plants the size of Shams 1 each year if it is to meet its targets by 2020. Dubai is also looking to go solar - but with more modest ambitions of achieving five per cent renewable energy production by 2030.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Wang Xiao.

1 shams   

假象( sham的名词复数 )； 假货； 虚假的行为（或感情、言语等）； 假装…的人

参考例句：

• Are those real diamonds or only shams? 那些是真钻石还是赝品？
• Tear away their veil of shams! 撕开他们的假面具吧！

2 watts   

（电力计量单位）瓦，瓦特( watt的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• My lamp uses 60 watts; my toaster uses 600 watts. 我的灯用60瓦，我的烤面包器用600瓦。
• My lamp uses 40 watts. 我的灯40瓦。

3 emission   

n.发出物，散发物；发出，散发

参考例句：

• Rigorous measures will be taken to reduce the total pollutant emission.采取严格有力措施，降低污染物排放总量。
• Finally,the way to effectively control particulate emission is pointed out.最后，指出有效降低颗粒排放的方向。

4 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

5 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

6 cater   

vi.(for/to)满足，迎合；(for)提供饮食及服务

参考例句：

• I expect he will be able to cater for your particular needs.我预计他能满足你的特殊需要。
• Most schools cater for children of different abilities.大多数学校能够满足具有不同天资的儿童的需要。

7 diversifying   

v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的现在分词 )；进入新的商业领域

参考例句：

• Some publishers are now diversifying into software. 有些出版社目前正兼营软件。 来自辞典例句
• Silverlit is diversifying into new markets, such as Russia and Eastern Europe. Silverlit正在使他们的市场变得多样化，开发新的市场如俄罗斯和东欧国家。 来自互联网

8 flip   

vt.快速翻动；轻抛；轻拍；n.轻抛；adj.轻浮的

参考例句：

• I had a quick flip through the book and it looked very interesting.我很快翻阅了一下那本书，看来似乎很有趣。
• Let's flip a coin to see who pays the bill.咱们来抛硬币决定谁付钱。

9 haze   

n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊

参考例句：

• I couldn't see her through the haze of smoke.在烟雾弥漫中，我看不见她。
• He often lives in a haze of whisky.他常常是在威士忌的懵懂醉意中度过的。

10 plummeting   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Prices are rising, falling, going up, going down, shooting up, plummeting, etc. 物价在上涨、下跌、上升、下落、猛然上涨、骤然下跌等。 来自辞典例句
• The enemy plane went plummeting into the sea. 敌机直直掉进海里。 来自辞典例句

11 dwindle   

v.逐渐变小（或减少）

参考例句：

• The factory's workforce has dwindled from over 4,000 to a few hundred.工厂雇员总数已经从4,000多人减少到几百人。
• He is struggling to come to terms with his dwindling authority.他正努力适应自己权力被削弱这一局面。