Masdar, ACWA Power, EEHC Sign MoU to Explore New Power Generation in Egypt

“Egypt is committed to meeting our rising energy needs and encouraging economic growth by developing new power generation in our country. We appreciate the partnership of companies, such as Masdar, ACWA Power and Egyptian Electricity Holding Company, which will explore the development of new renewable energy and natural gas facilities to provide electricity for Egyptian homes and businesses,” said Dr. Mohamed Shaker El-Markabi, Egypt’s minister of electricity and energy.

Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s multifaceted renewable energy company, would lead development of renewable energy projects in partnership with ACWA Power of Saudi Arabia. According to the MoU, the partners will evaluate 2 GW of renewable energy projects, including 1.5 GW of solar and 500 Megawatts of wind. The first project that would be considered is a 200 MW solar photovoltaic plant.

H.E. Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and Chairman of Masdar said: “Egypt has one of the fastest growing populations in the Middle East, so it is vitally important to support sustainable economic development by increasing access to energy. Masdar will rely on its proven experience delivering large scale renewable energy projects to explore cost-competitive options that this partnership could potentially develop to improve Egypt’s energy security.”

The framework agreement also calls for development of 2.2 GW of combined-cycle natural gas generation led by ACWA Power.

Paddy Padmanathan, ACWA Power President and Chief Executive Officer, said: “Egypt is a very important market for us. The Egyptian government efforts in keeping pace with the increasing demand of power and energy to meet the expectations of its developing economy, is a key driver in looking into efficient energy solutions. Through this MoU, the partnership will look into potential opportunities of generating power more efficiently, utilizing a broader mix of fuel resources and renewable energy sources, hence providing cutting edge technologies and a more cost competitive approach. Producing 4GigaWatt of energy will not only sustain economic development but will also position Egypt as one of the globally leading countries in the field of renewable energy.”

Egypt has made installing additional power generation capacity a priority, rolling out one of the Middle East and North African region’s most ambitious renewable energy programs as it seeks to meet surging domestic energy demand while curbing reliance on fossil fuel imports.

“We are pleased to partner with ACWA Power and Masdar to examine the development of new power plants in Egypt, including renewable energy and natural gas. Every day we work to ensure that Egyptians have the electricity they need, and at the same time we are looking at new projects to help provide the power for Egypt’s future,” said Dr. Gaber dsouky, chairman of EEHC.

At the end of 2013, Egypt had 31 GW of total installed generating capacity, dominated by natural gas and oil. It had 552MW of wind and 20MW of solar generating capacity. The renewable component, including hydro, is projected to increase to 20% by 2020.