Solar panels are coming under the spotlight at a workshop on renewable energy in Dubai. Officials at the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) are keen to increase uptake of their ‘Shams Dubai’ programme, which encourages residents to make use of solar energy. Experts say buying the panels and having them installed is still expensive, so the business case for solar is better for companies with larger consumption of electricity. The workshop looked at the latest developments in solar panel systems, how to bring down costs and comparing global policies with the UAE’s current laws.