The second phase of the Mohamed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Dubai-based solar park will become operational by April 2017, a top official told Trade Arabia.

The park, which is worth AED 1.2 billion, has a capacity of 200 MW. It furthermore complies with the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy of year 2050, which aims at providing 7% of Dubai’s total power output from clean energy sources by 2020, to increase 25% by 2030, and 75% by 2050.

The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) managed to set a new world record in obtaining the lowest prices globally, at cost of $0.056 per KW in the park’s second phase.

DEWA is also collaborating with international organizations in research efforts for water desalination using solar energy. The project supporst DEWA and the UAE Water Foundation in supplying clean drinking water to drought-affected countries.

An innovation center will also be part of the Solar Park, consisting of a museum, and an exhibition and convention center for renewable solar energy, according to Emirates 24/7.

DEWA manages and operates the Mohamed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and aims at making it the largest single-site-solar park in the world, as the first phase of the park became operational in 2013. The whole project is expected to reduce about 6.5 million tons of carbon emissions annually.