It is exciting to see that one of the world's biggest solar power plants is to be built in Abu Dhabi. The Shams 1 plant will push the boundaries of what is possible, with a capacity of 100 megawatts. The plant will also offer the UAE an essential new source of energy, and act as a vital test of how solar energy can be harnessed on a truly large scale.
In the long term, only renewable energy will allow the human race to exist on Earth for any length of time. It is self-evident that fossil fuels will run out in time. We know that hydrocarbons will be exhausted eventually, even if we are not sure when that will happen. Better extraction methods and more efficient use of power may allow us to depend on hydrocarbons for many decades, but in the end the supply will run out.
Equally, we will run out of uranium, which is used in nuclear power stations, in the end, even if that is centuries away. But a much more immediate challenge posed by nuclear power is to devise a means of dealing with toxic, radioactive waste. We should not forget the lessons inherent in the devastation in huge areas of the former Soviet Union, where fuel was simply buried and dumped.
This is why so many people are spending so much time and money researching renewable sources of energy, and the sun is the most important of these. It is a brave decision by the government to seek to meet seven per cent of Abu Dhabi's growing energy needs by tapping renewable sources, within such a short period. The technology is new and delivering the power will require numerous problems to be overcome, while the demand is real and cannot be ignored. Abu Dhabi is breaking new ground with Shams 1, and deserves praise for doing so.
