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Dubai to start solar park prequalifications

6 May 2025

 

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State utility Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (Dewa) is expected to issue the prequalification request to interested firms soon for a contract to develop the next phase of the emirate's Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum (MBR) Solar Park.

The planned seventh phase of MBR Solar Park will include a 1,600MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant and a 1,000MW battery energy storage system (bess) plant, providing up to six hours of storage.

International and regional utility developers; engineering, procurement and construction contractors; and battery energy storage suppliers attended an investor roadshow for the project on 9 April, as MEED reported.

French utility developer Engie; Riyadh-headquartered Acwa Power and Alfanar; and the local Amea Power, Etihad Water & Electricity Company and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) were among those that attended the investor roadshow last month.

According to an industry source, Dewa is expected to issue the request for qualifications "within a few days".

MEED understands that 47 firms submitted their responses to Dewa’s expression of interest (EoI) request for the contract on 21 March.

Dewa issued the EoI request in February.

The project is expected to be commissioned in phases, starting in August 2027.

In January, Dewa selected a transaction advisory team for the project, comprising UK-headquartered Deloitte and US-based CMS and Sargent & Lundy as financial, legal and technical advisers, with Deloitte acting as lead adviser. 

In February last year, Dewa and Masdar reached financial close for the 1,800MW sixth phase of MBR Solar Park, which is expected to cost up to AED5.51bn ($1.5bn).

Once completed in 2026, the sixth phase will increase the solar park’s total production capacity to 4,660MW.

Dewa recently increased its flagship solar project's 2030 target installed capacity by 45%, from 5,000MW to 7,260MW.

The state utility said MBR Solar Park will have a production capacity of more than 7,260MW by 2030, with a total investment of AED50bn ($13.6bn).

According to Dewa, the total capacity of the solar energy projects commissioned at the solar park has reached 3,460MW from PV solar panels and concentrated solar power.

Based on this figure, clean energy accounts for 20% of Dewa's total power capacity of about 17,179MW as of early 2025. Natural gas-fired capacity accounts for the rest.

The Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net-Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050 aim to provide 100% of Dubai's energy production capacity from clean energy sources by 2050.

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Jennifer Aguinaldo

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