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Acwa Power restarts 200MW Kom Ombo project

26 April 2023

Saudi utility developer and investor Acwa Power has obtained a $123m financing package to develop the 200MW Kom Ombo solar power plant in Egypt.

This package is slightly higher than the value agreed in 2021, at $114m, before the project was put on hold.

Acwa Power asked the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) to postpone the project in November 2021, a few months after it reached financial close for the project in August of that year.

It was said at the time that construction work on the project would resume once solar panel prices and freight fees stabilised.

The following banks have agreed to provide loans for the project:

  • European Bank for Reconstruction & Development (EBRD): $36m
  • Opec Fund for International Development: $14.6m
  • African Development Bank (AfDB): $14.4m
  • AfDB’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (Sefa): $10m
  • Green Climate Fund: $34.5m
  • Arab Bank: $14.8m

EBRD and Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp) have also provided equity bridge loans for the project of $14m and $45m, respectively.

Acwa Power CEO Marco Arcelli said the developer is committed to fast-tracking the project’s development.

The Kom Ombo solar power plant will be located less than 20 kilometres from the 1,465MW Benban complex. It is expected to reach commercial operations in January 2024.

Once fully functional, the new utility-scale plant will serve 130,000 households.

Acwa Power added: “While the financing documentation was originally signed in April 2021 with the EBRD, the Opec Fund, the Green Climate Fund, African Development Bank and Arab Bank, the dynamics in global supply chains due to Covid-19 altered the dynamics for the development of solar plants. This resulted in the extension for Kom Ombo’s project execution.”

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Jennifer Aguinaldo

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