Saudi Arabian renewables developer, ACWA Power, has secured a US$ 114 million financing package for the development of the 200MW Kom Ombo solar plant, set to be Egypt’s largest solar plant.
The package comprises loans of up to US$ 36 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), US$ 18 million from the the OPEC Fund for International Development, US$ 17.8 million from the African Development Bank (AfDB), US$ 23.8 million from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and US$ 18 million from Arab Bank. This is in addition to equity bridge loans of up to US$ 14 million from EBRD and US$ 33.5 million from Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP).
The development of the Kom Ombo solar plant will increase the share of renewable energy in Egypt’s energy mix and further promote private-sector participation in the Egyptian power sector.
The Kom Ombo solar energy facility plant will be located less than 20 km from Africa’s biggest solar park, the 1.8 GW Benban complex. Once operational, the new utility-scale plant will serve 130,000 households.
Kom Ombo 4th ACWA Power plant in Egypt
“Kom Ombo PV is the fourth project in ACWA Power’s Egyptian portfolio and the conclusion of this financing demonstrates the confidence in the Egyptian government’s ambitious renewable energy plans, being implemented through private-sector participation,” said Paddy Padmanathan, CEO of ACWA Power.
ACWA Power won the project after submitting the lowest tariff in what was the first solar photovoltaic (PV) tender in Egypt. The provision of solar energy through a public tendering process aims to achieve a competitive tariff and promote the growth of solar energy as an affordable alternative to conventional energy sources.
“The Kom Ombo solar project is a truly remarkable transaction. It not only clearly demonstrates the indisputable competitiveness of solar PV vis-à-vis conventional sources of generation, but it also directly contributes towards the realization of Egypt’s ambitious renewable energy targets, in addition to being an excellent example of what stakeholders driven by a shared objective can achieve,” said Kevin Kariuki, Vice President in charge of Power, Energy, Climate Change and Green Growth at AfDB.
The Kom Ombo plant will contribute to the Egyptian government’s target to generate 42 per cent of the country’s electricity from renewable energy sources by 2035 while delivering one of the lowest generation tariffs on the continent.
