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Dubai

800 Megawatts Solar Project In Dubai Achieves Financial Closure

written by saurabh

The third phase of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai has achieved financial closure marking a major milestone for one of the largest solar power projects and solar power parks in the world.

Construction at the 800 megawatt project being developed by the Masdar Group and EDF Energies Nouvelles began in January 2017 and is expected to be operational in 2020. Debt funding for the project came from seven different financial institutions, including the Islamic Development Bank and the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation, Korea Development Bank and Export Development Canada.

The presence of these funding institutions points towards very low interest rate. A low interest rate is exactly what the project developers require as it is also among the cheapest solar power projects in the world.

The phase III tender set a record for lowest-ever solar PV tariff globally at that time. The Masdar-led consortium beat the phase II winning bid of 5.84¢/kWh with a bid of 2.99¢/kWh. Masdar Group and DEWA signed the power purchase agreement for the project in November 2016.

Recently, Canadian Solar shipped 268 megawatts of solar modules for the project. The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park has an operational capacity of 213 megawatts from the first two phases commissioned by First Solar and ACWA Power.

The solar power park will be the mainstay of Dubai’s clean energy policy.

The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park will have an eventual capacity of 5 gigawatts. The initial planned capacity was 1 gigawatt which was subsequently increased to 3 gigawatts, and now 5 gigawatts. Bids of the first 1 gigawatt of capacity have already been awarded.

June 18, 2017 0 comment

ACWA Power Commissions 200 Megawatts Solar Project In Dubai

written by saurabh

The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority recently announced that the second phase of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park has been commissioned.

The 200 megawatts project of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park takes the total capacity of the park to 213 megawatts. The project was allotted to a consortium of ACWA Power and TSK at then-lowest tariff of 5.98¢/kWh.

The project was officially launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The project consists of 2.3 million solar panels supplied by First Solar. The project is spread over 4.5 square kilometres and will generate enough electricity to power 50,000 homes and offset 214,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year.

ACWA Power secured debt financing loan worth $344 million for the project. The 27-year loan will be provided by Abu Dhabi’s First Gulf Bank and 2 Saudi banks — the National Commercial Bank and the Samba Financial Group. Paddy Padmanathan, Chief Executive Officer, ACWA Power had announced at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2015 that the company would secure debt financing at a low interest rate of just 4%.

The solar power park will have an eventual capacity of 5 gigawatts. The initial planned capacity was 1 gigawatt which was subsequently increased to 3 gigawatts, and now 5 gigawatts. Bids of the first 1 gigawatt of capacity have already been awarded.

Under the recently announced Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 plan, Dubai targets 44% energy from renewable energy sources, 38% from gas, 12% from ‘clean fuels’ and 6% from nuclear energy. Almost $17 billion will be invested to expand the Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.

Phase III of the solar power park, with capacity of 800 megawatts, was awarded to a consortium of Masdar Group, Fotowatio Renewable Ventures and Gransolar Group. The project was awarded at 2.99¢/kWh. Power purchase agreement for this phase has been signed and construction is underway. The project will likely be commissioned by 2020.

DEWA has also issued a tender for 200 megawatts concentrated solar power capacity which will form phase IV of the solar power park. The project will be awarded in June this year and is expected to be operational by April 2021.

March 22, 2017 0 comment

Dubai Launches 200 Megawatts CSP Tender

written by saurabh

Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) announced a fresh tender for the iconic Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park just days after Dubai announced long-term renewable energy targets.

Media outlets recently reported that DEWA launched a 200 megawatts tender for concentrated solar power project at the Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. This is the first time concentrated solar power technology will come up at the solar power park.

The 200 megawatt project is set to be commissioned by April 2021 and will add to the more than 1 gigawatts of solar photovoltaic power capacity, almost of which is currently under development at the solar power park.

An additional 800 megawatts CSP capacity will be added to the solar power park taking the total CSP installed capacity to 1,000 megawatts by 2030.

The solar power park will now be increased to a capacity of 5 gigawatts. The initial planned capacity was 1 gigawatt which was subsequently increased to 3 gigawatts, and now 5 gigawatts. Bids of the first 1 gigawatt of capacity have already been awarded.

Under the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy, the Emirate aims to achieve 7% share of clean energy sources in the total energy mix, which is scheduled to be increased to 25% by 2030 and 75% by 2050.

January 22, 2017 0 comment

PPA Signed For 800 MW Dubai Solar Power Project At US¢2.99/kWh

written by saurabh

The iconic third phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park moved another step closer to being a reality after a power purchase agreement was signed for the project.

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) recently signed a power purchase agreement for the 800 MW project with Abu Dhabi-based Masdar Group.

In June, A Masdar Group–led consortium was confirmed as the winner of the 800 MW solar power tender that was floated by the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) last year. The consortium includes Fotowatio Renewable Ventures and Gransolar Group.

The 800 MW phase III of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park will be commissioned by 2020 and will add to the existing 13 MW and the under-development 200 MW of capacity. The phase III tender set a record for lowest-ever solar PV tariff globally at that time. The Masdar-led consortium beat the phase II winning bid of 5.84¢/kWh with a bid of 2.99¢/kWh.

A fourth phase of the solar power park was announced by DEWA recently, which will have an installed capacity of 1 GW.

Initially, the Authority received as many as 95 expressions of interest. Many prospective bidders are believed to have formed joint ventures for the subsequent rounds of bidding, with around 20 left in the fray at the end of last year. These included biggies like SunEdison, ACWA Power, JinkoSolar–RWE, REC Solar, and Engie.

November 30, 2016 1 comment

Dubai Confirms Masdar-led Consortium As Winner Of 800 MW Solar Power Tender

written by saurabh

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority gave official confirmation about the winners of the 800 MW phase III of the Dubai solar power park.

A Masdar Group-led consortium was confirmed as the winner of 800 MW solar power tender that was floated by the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) last year. The consortium includes Fotowatio Renewable Ventures and Gransolar Group.

The 800 MW phase III of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park will be commissioned by 2020 and will add to the existing 13 MW and under-development 200 MW capacity. The phase III tender set another record for lowest-ever solar PV tariff globally. The Masdar-led consortium beat the phase II winning bid of US¢5.84/kWh with a bid of US¢2.99/kWh.

A fourth phase of the solar power park was announced by DEWA recently which will have an installed capacity of 1 GW.

The initial installed capacity target for Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park was set at 1 GW by 2019. However, last year, DEWA announced that it would boost the park’s capacity to 3 GW by 2030, with a total estimated investment of $3 billion.

The solar power park is central to DEWA’s target to source 7% of Dubai’s total power output from renewable energy sources by 2020, and 15% by 2030.

June 29, 2016 0 comment

Dubai To Set Up 1 GW Concentrated Solar Power Project

written by saurabh

After the record-breaking success in received in the auctions of 500 MW solar PV power capacity, Dubai is now planning to set up concentrated solar power (CSP) project.

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has announced plans to set up 1 GW CSP capacity at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park. The project could very well be the largest CSP project in the world.

DEWA plans to have 1 GW CSP capacity operational by 2030 and will soon launch tender to allocate 200 MW capacity. The expansion of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park is part of DEWA’s strategy to meet its renewable energy target.

Dubai plans to source 7% of its electricity demand from clean energy sources by 2020. This share is slated to be increased to 25% by 2030 and 75% by 2050.

Dubai plans to have an installed capacity of 5 GW at Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park by 2030. At least 3 GW of this capacity will be based on solar PV technology.

The first phase of the solar power park, 13 MW, is already operational. The second phase of 200 MW capacity is being developed by ACWA Power and TSK and is expected to be operational by April 2017. The third phase of 800 MW capacity was recently auctioned to a consortium of Abdul Latif Jameel (Saudi Arabia) + Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (Spain) + Masdar (UAE) for the low solar price bid of 2.99¢/kWh.

June 5, 2016 0 comment

Top Ten Highlights of Cleantech in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

written by Walter Wang

The United Arab Emirates, much like some of the other countries throughout the Middle East, is doing what it can to ensure it becomes much more energy efficient and starts using more renewable sources of energy. Dubai, much like its neighbor Abu Dhabi, is doing what it can to ensure the entire state becomes much more clean technology friendly. This includes

May 11, 2012 0 comment

Green City Project Masdar’s Fate May Hinge on Dubai Debt

written by

Dubai’s debt woes could have an impact on a key experiment in the renewable energy sector.

In late November, Dubai indicated that its state-controlled investment firm Dubai World needed to restructure $26 billion in debt, sending a shock through global markets.

Dubai is part of the United Arab Emirates, a federation of seven city-states ruled by hereditary clans. It is largely bankrolled by neighboring Abu Dhabi, which uses Dubai as the UAE business center.

December 10, 2009 3 comments