Reading Time: 3 minutes
ACWA Power, the world’s largest privately-owned water desalination company based in Saudi Arabia, recognised as a pioneer in green hydrogen and a prominent player in energy transition, has executed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA). The MoU is for securing land allocation for an upcoming 10 GW wind project in Egypt.
As per the MoU, an area of approximately 3,000 square kilometers located west of Sohag, an urban center, has been designated for the wind project. The aim of the project is to produce approximately 50 thousand gigawatt-hours of clean energy annually, powering up approximately 11 million households. The project is also anticipated to significantly contribute to carbon emissions reduction, mitigating the impact of approximately 25.5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year.
The 10 GW wind power plant aims to deliver significant benefits to the Egyptian economy, which includes an estimated annual savings of US$6.5 billion in natural gas costs. Additionally, this project is slated to create 120,000 job opportunities. During the construction phase alone, it will provide direct employment for approximately 45,000 individuals and indirectly support around 75,000 people. Once commissioned, the operation and maintenance phase will further add approximately 2,500 jobs.
The agreement was executed at the headquarters of the Council of Ministers in the new city of El Alamein by Dr. Mohamed El Khayat, Chairman of NREA, and Eng. Hassan Amin, Country Director – Egypt, ACWA Power.
H.E. Dr. Moustafa Madbouly, Prime Minister of Egypt; H.E. Dr. Mohamed Shaker, the Egyptian Minister of Electricity; Mr. Mazyad bin Muhammad Al-Huwaishan, Consul General of Saudi Arabia in Alexandria, Eng. Sabah Mashaly, Chairman of EETC; and Marco Arcelli, CEO, ACWA Power also attended the signing ceremony.
Speaking about the occasion, H.E. Dr. Mohamed Shaker Al-Marqabi, Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy, commented, “Egypt has adopted an ambitious programme to advance the electricity sector in various fields, which includes maximising the utilisation of new and renewable energy resources, encouraging investment in these fields to enable energy independence from fossil fuels, continuing to reduce carbon emissions, and increasing renewable energy capacity in the energy mix up to 42% by 2035. This focus also aligns with Egypt’s Vision 2030 and the National Climate Strategy 2050 with a view to mitigating the impact of climate change challenges and achieving sustainable economic growth. This project is also an extension of the historical relations between the Egyptian state and the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and reflects the bonds of fruitful and constructive cooperation between the two countries. We foresee that the positive contributions with financing institutions and development partners, as well as the comparative advantages of Egypt in terms of the availability of land, will show that Egypt has what it takes to produce renewable energy for domestic consumption and export.”
Marco Arcelli, Chief Executive Officer of ACWA Power, added, “Today’s signing furthers our commitment to driving sustainable development and powering Egypt’s future with clean, reliable, and renewable energy. We are determined to harness the vast potential of wind power, creating jobs, reducing emissions, and ensuring a greener and brighter future for Egypt, in alignment with ACWA Power’s vision for a sustainable planet.”
ACWA Power has had a strong presence in Egypt since 2015 with three other facilities either operational, under construction, or in advanced stages of development. These include:
-120 MW solar PV project located in Benban,
-200 MW solar PV facility in Kom Ombo, and
-1.1 GW Suez Wind Energy project.
