Gas-rich Qatar signed a $470-million deal to build its first solar energy plant, capable of meeting up to one-tenth of peak national power demand. The capital cost of the venture is 1.7 billion riyals ($470 million), with state firms taking a 60-percent stake and foreign investors 40 percent.
The Al-Kharsaah plant, near the capital, is a 10 square kilometre joint venture with French and Japanese partners due for completion in 2022 ahead of the football World Cup. Eight times the solar power pledged in the World Cup bid will be produced.
Qatar’s ruler, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, vowed at the United Nations last year that the tournament would be carbon neutral, but gave little detail on how this would be achieved. By contrast, Abu Dhabi’s Sweihan plant, one of the world’s largest solar projects, produces 1,177 megawatts.
Qatar scrapped mandatory exit permits for migrant domestic staff and other groups, as part of efforts to boost rights for guest workers amid scrutiny of its record. Previously all foreigners working permanently in the gas-rich country required authorisation from bosses to leave, but now only military personnel will routinely require such a dispensation.
It also dropped the exit visa requirements for other foreign workers including civil servants, oil and gas workers, and employees of government bodies including Qatar Airways. The announcement came after Human Rights Watch published it annual report Tuesday, saying Qatari “reforms have not gone far enough, and implementation has been uneven“.
Qatar has made a series of reforms to its employment regulations since being selected to host the 2022 World Cup. Some two million foreigners work in Qatar, many employed directly or indirectly on vast infrastructure projects for the 2022 World Cup.
Domestic staff must give their employers 72 hours notice before leaving under the new rules. Companies can also designate up to five percent of staff as “responsible” roles, such as those with financial oversight, who will still be required to seek managerial approval to leave.