Four bids submitted in race for 1.5-GW solar project in Abu Dhabi

Four proposals have been submitted in the competition for the development of the 1.5-GW Al Ajban solar PV project in Abu Dhabi and the winner will be unveiled by the last quarter of 2023.

UAE's utility Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) said on Monday it has received bids from ACWA Power (TADAWUL:2082), EDF Renewables, Marubeni Corp (TYO:8002), and a consortium consisting of Jinko Power and JERA.

EWEC invited developers to make bids in January. Of the 43 Expressions of Interest from potential bidding companies and consortiums only 19 qualified for the request-for-proposals stage.

The four proposals that have been filed will undergo a detailed technical and commercial evaluation process to select the best bid and sign a power purchase agreement (PPA) by the fourth quarter of this year.

Al Ajban solar photovoltaic project is EWEC’s third large-scale solar power project. When completed, the solar park will generate enough electricity to power about 160,000 homes across the UAE and will also raise the utility’s total solar power capacity to some 4 GW (AC).

The gigawatt-scale solar farm will support EWEC to achieve its strategic plans of raising Abu Dhabi’s solar power generation capacity to 7.3 GW by 2030 and boosting the share of renewable and clean power in the emirate's power mix to 60% by 2035.

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