GIS-based multi-criteria wind farm site selection methodology

Abstract

It is prevalent that by 2050, the global energy demand would increase by 50% to the current demand. The projected demand for electricity in Saudi Arabia is expected to exceed 120 GW/year by 2032. The Saudi government has set a goal of generating 9.5 GW of wind energy by 2023. In this study, firstly, a spatial interpolation technique is used to build a first accurate wind map of the entire country, then a GIS-based multicriteria decision-making model is developed to select suitable wind farm sites considering various ecological, environmental and socio-economic criteria. All the identified criteria are given equal weightage in the model. Therefore, with noncompliance with even a single criterion, the associated complete area is considered unsuitable. As a case study, this model is independently applied to four regions covering the entire of Saudi Arabia. In the northern region, three wind farm sites are identified. The central area has a more suitable area compared to other regions mainly due to good wind resources and road and grid connectivity. The suitable sites in the Eastern region are located between Dammam and Hafr AlBatin city. The southern region has a scarcest suitable area for wind power exploitation located near the province of Madinah.