Beyond daylight: The rise of 24/7 renewable power

For years, the renewable energy conversation has largely been about how much solar and wind capacity countries can install. Now, the focus is beginning to change. The next challenge is not simply producing clean electricity, but making it available whenever it is needed.
This is giving rise to the concept of 24/7 renewable power, sometimes described as “firm” renewable energy. Instead of treating solar and wind as intermittent sources that must be backed up by conventional power plants, new energy systems are being designed to combine renewable generation with storage, smarter grids and complementary sources of electricity.
The International Renewable Energy Agency has identified this shift as an important part of the next phase of the global energy transition. Its 2026 work on the economics of firm solar and wind explores how renewable projects paired with battery storage can increasingly provide electricity around the clock rather than only when the sun is shining or the wind is blowing.
The timing is particularly relevant for Oman.
The Sultanate of Oman is preparing for a major expansion in renewable generation. Four solar projects, each planned at around 1 GW, are envisaged at Adam, Al Kamil W'al Wafi, Thamrait and Mahadha from 2028 onwards. Together, they form part of Oman’s effort to generate at least 30 per cent of its electricity from clean energy sources by 2030.
Wind power is also moving forward. In Al Duqm, two wind projects with a combined capacity of 58 MW are under development, demonstrating how different renewable resources could increasingly work together within the same energy system.
This combination matters because Oman’s renewable resources do not all peak at the same time. Solar production is strongest during daylight hours, while wind conditions in certain parts of the country can remain favourable beyond sunset. Pairing the two can reduce the periods when neither resource is producing enough electricity.
Storage can then fill shorter gaps by absorbing surplus power and releasing it when demand rises.
The result is a different way of thinking about renewable infrastructure. Instead of asking how much electricity a solar farm can generate during the day, planners increasingly ask how much dependable power an entire renewable system can deliver over 24 hours.
Globally, this question is becoming more important as renewable capacity grows rapidly. According to the International Energy Agency, the world added around 800 GW of renewable capacity in 2025, a 16 per cent increase from the previous year. Solar represented more than three quarters of those additions.
At such scale, simply installing more panels is no longer enough. Electricity grids must also become capable of moving renewable power between regions, balancing changes in generation and responding rapidly to fluctuations in supply.
For Oman, the transition towards 24/7 renewables could have implications beyond the national electricity grid. Industries producing green hydrogen and other low-carbon products will require large quantities of dependable renewable electricity. The ability to provide cleaner power consistently could therefore become part of Oman’s wider industrial competitiveness.
The next chapter of renewable energy may consequently be less about the individual solar panel or wind turbine and more about how all parts of the system work together.
For Oman, abundant sunshine and increasingly ambitious wind development provide the raw resources. The challenge now is turning those resources into electricity that is not only clean, but available whenever it is required.