Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (Kahramaa) has awarded a feasibility study for the country’s first ever solar power project to France’s Sogreah.

Under the preliminary feasibility study services contract, the company will assess the development of desalination plants which would be powered by solar energy.

The project is part of the Qatar National Food Security Programme (QNFSP) and will be used to irrigate agricultural land in the country.

Kahramaa estimates that the QNFSP will require 296 million gallons a day of desalinated water. This could be produced by one or more solar desalination plants.

The client has chosen parabolic trough solar technology and multi-effect distillation for the desalination process. However, as part of its remit, Sogreah will carry out further studies before making a final recommendation on which technology to use.

The company will also advise on the number of plants that are needed and their configuration. In addition, it will also recommend power and water transmission and storage infrastructure, propose power and water tariffs, and produce a basic concept design report.

Kahramaa has already selected a number of potential sites for the project, but it will be up to Sogreah to assess their suitability.