Evaluation of the Significant Renewable Energy Resources in Sultanate of Oman using Analytical Hierarchy Process

Abstract

The Sultanate of Oman is a fast growing region and is the fifth largest economy in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) regions. The oil and gas sectors are the main promoters of Oman’s economy. The reservoirs of natural resources are insufficient for the future needs. The electricity sector of Oman mostly depends on natural gas and diesel.  Renewable energy has no major role in the country’s energy supply despite having valuable wind, hydropower and solar resources. This paper recommends the use of the available renewable energy sources and exploits their potential to facilitate the Sultanate of Oman, to aid the future plans of Oman in implementing renewable energy by 2020. The objectives of this paper are achieved by carrying out literature review of the importance of the renewable energy sources according to the conditions of Oman, and by utilizing Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) functioning software Expert Choice and manual calculations to select the best renewable energy source according to the conditions of Oman and the decision-makers. It can be stated that Oman has untouched potential of Renewable Energy sources and Wind Energy is identified as the potential renewable energy source for Sultanate of Oman.