meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

EDF wins Al Ajban solar contract

15 February 2024

 

Register for MEED's guest programme 

Emirates Water & Electricity Company (Ewec) is understood to have awarded a contract to develop Abu Dhabi’s third utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) independent power project (IPP).

A team led by French utility developer EDF Renewables,and includes South Korea's Korea Western Power Company (Kowepo) won the 1,500MW Al Ajban solar PV IPP contract, industry sources tell MEED.

It is the third major contract win in the GCC by the French utility developer and investor over the past 12 months. The other two contracts include the 500MW Manah 1 solar IPP in Oman and the 1,100MW Hinakiyah solar IPP project in Saudi Arabia. 

The EDF-led team submitted the lowest levelised electricity cost of 5.1921 fils a kilowatt-hour (kWh) or about 1.413 $cents/kWh for the Al Ajban solar PV IPP contract, as MEED reported in July 2023.

Japan’s Marubeni submitted the second-lowest bid of 5.3577 fils/kWh.

Ewec requested proposals for the contract in January 2023 and received bids in late June.

It qualified 19 companies that could bid for the contract in September 2022.

Delivering goals

The Al-Ajban project, similar to the 1,584MW Al-Dhafra solar IPP – which was inaugurated in November – and the operational 935MW Noor Abu Dhabi plant, supports the UAE Energy Strategy 2050 and the UAE Net-Zero by 2050 strategic initiative.

The Al-Ajban solar PV scheme is expected to generate enough electricity for about 160,000 homes across the UAE and to reduce Abu Dhabi’s carbon dioxide emissions by more than 2.4 million metric tonnes annually.

Ewec aims to install 16GW of solar PV capacity by 2036, the firm’s executive director for strategy and planning, Bruce Smith, said in March last year.

The plan implies procuring about 1.5GW of capacity annually over the next 10 years.

Over the intervening period ending in 2030, Ewec envisages having an additional 5GW of solar capacity to reach a total solar installed capacity of 7.3GW by 2030.

Smith said Ewec expects its first battery energy storage system to come online in the late 2020s to enable optimum use of renewable energy captured during daytime at times when the solar PV fleets do not produce energy.

The UAE published its updated national energy strategy in July last year, which included a plan to triple the nationwide renewable energy capacity to 19GW by 2030.

Photo: Ewec/Al-Dhafra solar IPP

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/11520283/main.jpg
Jennifer Aguinaldo

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Webuild wins $600m Diriyah Square project deal

    14 July 2025

    Italian contractor Webuild has announced that it has won a $600m contract from Diriyah Company for a package for the Diriyah Square project.

    The contract relates to construction works on package three of the Diriyah Square project. It involves the finishing and mechanical, electrical and plumbing works on more than 70 buildings and public spaces within Diriyah Square.

    These assets cover a total area of about 365,000 square metres.

    Webuild is already working on the underground multi-storey car park at Diriyah Square.

    The three-floor underground car park will serve the mixed-use Diriyah Square district, which will include leisure and entertainment, hotels, retail, grade A offices, the King Salman Grand mosque and residential units designed in the traditional Najdi architectural style.

    The car park has a floor area of 1 million square metres, with underground roads and tunnels below Diriyah Square, and a capacity for 10,500 cars.

    The parking facility will directly connect commuters with all of Diriyah’s destinations, including Wadi Hanifah, the Western Ring Road and a national motorway. It will be a key component of the City of Riyadh Arterial Road system.

    In an official statement on its website, Webuild said that the construction works on the car park are 55% completed.

    MEED reported in January 2021 that Diriyah Company had selected Webuild for the super basement car park at the Diriyah project in Riyadh.

    Diriyah gigaproject

    The Diriyah masterplan envisages the city as a cultural and lifestyle tourism destination. Located northwest of Riyadh’s city centre, it will cover 14 square kilometres and combine 300 years of history, culture and heritage with hospitality facilities.

    The company awarded several significant contracts last year, including three contracts worth over SR21bn ($5.5bn). These included an estimated $2bn contract awarded to a joint venture of El-Seif Engineering & Contracting and China State to build the North Cultural District.

    In July last year, Diriyah also awarded a $2.1bn package to a joint venture of local contractor Albawani and Qatar’s Urbacon to construct assets in the Wadi Safar district of the gigaproject.

    Then in December, Diriyah Company awarded an estimated SR5.8bn ($1.5bn) contract to a joint venture of local firm Nesma & Partners and the local branch of Man Enterprise for its Jabal Al-Qurain Avenue cultural district, located in the northern district of the Diriyah Gate project.

    Once complete, Diriyah will have the capacity to accommodate 100,000 residents and visitors.

    READ THE JULY 2025 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    UAE and Turkiye expand business links; Renewed hope lies on the horizon for trouble-beset Levant region; Gulf real estate momentum continues even as concerns emerge

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the July 2025 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > PROJECTS MARKET: GCC projects market collapses
    > GULF PROJECTS INDEX: Gulf projects index continues climb
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14259832/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • August deadline for Diriyah Pendry superblock package

    14 July 2025

     

    Saudi gigaproject developer Diriyah Company has asked firms to submit commercial proposals by 13 August for a contract to build the Pendry superblock package in the second phase of the Diriyah Gate development (DG2).

    MEED understands that the tender was issued in June, with the technical bid submission deadline set for 6 July.

    The Pendry superblock encompasses the construction of a hotel, known as the Pendry Hotel, along with residential and commercial assets.

    The project will span an area of 75,365 square metres and is located in the northwestern district of the DG2 area.

    Earlier this month, MEED exclusively reported that Diriyah Company is preparing to tender more superblock packages this quarter, following the receipt of prequalification statements from interested firms.

    Notices were issued in mid-June for packages that include the Waldorf Astoria superblock and the Edition superblock, both located in DG2.

    The Waldorf Astoria superblock is a mixed-use development featuring the Waldorf Astoria Residences & Hotel, commercial and residential facilities and office spaces.

    The Waldorf Astoria Hotel is a 200-key property, while the Waldorf Astoria Residences will offer around 46 branded residences.

    The project is located along the Grand Boulevard South and the Northern Arterial Road in the Boulevard Northwestern district at DG2. 

    The prequalification documents for this package were submitted on 29 June.

    Prequalification documents for the Edition superblock were submitted on 2 July.

    This package comprises a mix of residential, commercial and office spaces, including the 200-key Edition Hotel and 150-key Equinox Hotel.

    The project is situated between King Khalid Road and the Grand Boulevard within the Boulevard East district in DG2.

    Diriyah Company has also received prequalification statements from firms interested in constructing the upcoming Radisson Red superblock in DG2.

    The Radisson Red superblock comprises a hotel, residential apartments, retail facilities, commercial office spaces and a park.

    The project is situated in the Boulevard East district, between King Khalid Road and the Grand Boulevard in Diriyah.

    Diriyah also tendered a contract in April to build the new iconic museum in the DG2 area. 

    Diriyah gigaproject

    The Diriyah masterplan envisages the city as a cultural and lifestyle tourism destination. Located northwest of Riyadh’s city centre, it will cover 14 square kilometres and combine 300 years of history, culture and heritage with hospitality facilities.

    The company awarded several significant contracts last year, including three contracts worth over SR21bn ($5.5bn). These included an estimated $2bn contract awarded to a joint venture of El-Seif Engineering & Contracting and China State to build the North Cultural District.

    In July last year, Diriyah also awarded a $2.1bn package to a joint venture of local contractor Albawani and Qatar’s Urbacon to construct assets in the Wadi Safar district of the gigaproject.

    Then in December, Diriyah Company awarded an estimated SR5.8bn ($1.5bn) contract to a joint venture of local firm Nesma & Partners and the local branch of Man Enterprise for its Jabal Al-Qurain Avenue cultural district, located in the northern district of the Diriyah Gate project.

    Once complete, Diriyah will have the capacity to accommodate 100,000 residents and visitors.

    READ THE JULY 2025 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    UAE and Turkiye expand business links; Renewed hope lies on the horizon for trouble-beset Levant region; Gulf real estate momentum continues even as concerns emerge

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the July 2025 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > PROJECTS MARKET: GCC projects market collapses
    > GULF PROJECTS INDEX: Gulf projects index continues climb
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14258798/main0303.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Penspen to expand workforce in Neutral Zone

    14 July 2025

     

    UK-based engineering and project management company Penspen is expanding its headcount in the Neutral Zone, which is shared by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, according to a senior executive.

    Penspen currently has 130 employees working in the Neutral Zone, also known as the Divided Zone. The company expects to increase the headcount to 200 by the end of the year, according to Neale Carter, the company’s executive vice-president for the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific.

    “It’s a challenging environment, but we’re very pleased to be there,” he said.

    Penspen was invited to join the tendering programme for a range of projects for state-owned Kuwait Gulf Oil Company (KGOC), which is a partner in Al-Khafji Joint Operations (KJO) alongside Saudi Arabia’s Aramco Gulf Operations Company (AGOC).

    Penspen was previously the project management consultant for KJO in the Neutral Zone from 2006 until 2017, when US-based Jacobs replaced them in the role.

    Penspen then went through the tendering process in 2022 and won the contract back in 2023.

    The current contract is a five-year project management consultancy services contract.

    The Neutral Zone has seen an uptick in oil and gas activity in the past couple of years.

    In May, MEED reported that KJO has more than 20 projects currently ongoing to develop the Khafji field, which is located in the shared territory.

    Additionally, KJO is currently in the tendering phase with engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on the Dorra gas field development project, which is also located in the Divided Zone.

    KJO has divided the scope of work on the Dorra gas field development project, which is estimated to be valued at up to $10bn, into four EPC packages – three offshore and one onshore.

    In May, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait announced a new oil discovery in the shared territory.

    The oil was discovered in the North Wafra Wara-Burgan field, located five kilometres north of the onshore Wafra field, within Wafra Joint Operations – a 50:50 joint venture of Kuwait Gulf Oil Company and US energy company Chevron.

    READ THE JULY 2025 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    UAE and Turkiye expand business links; Renewed hope lies on the horizon for trouble-beset Levant region; Gulf real estate momentum continues even as concerns emerge

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the July 2025 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > PROJECTS MARKET: GCC projects market collapses
    > GULF PROJECTS INDEX: Gulf projects index continues climb
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14254527/main.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Saudi Arabia signs deals for $8.3bn of renewables projects

    14 July 2025

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    A consortium of Acwa Power, Water & Electricity Holding Company (Badeel) and Saudi Aramco Power Company (Sapco) has signed power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) for seven renewable energy projects that will require $8.3bn of investment.

    The projects, which have a total capacity of 15,000MW, include five large-scale solar photovoltaic plants with a total capacity of 12,000MW and two large-scale wind energy plants with a total capacity of 3,000MW.

     

    Financial closes are expected by the third quarter of 2025. The projects are scheduled to start operating in the second half of 2027 and the first half of 2028.

    The projects are part of Saudi Arabia’s National Renewable Energy Programme (NREP), which is led and supervised by the Energy Ministry. PIF has committed to developing 70% of Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy target capacity by 2030.

    With the addition of these new projects, Acwa Power's solar and wind portfolio in Saudi Arabia now comprises 21 projects, representing more than 34GW of combined renewable capacity. Acwa Power's total renewable capacity portfolio, which includes projects in other countries, totals 51.9GW.

    The Public Investment Fund (PIF) is the largest shareholder in Acwa Power; it is listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) with a 44% stake. The PIF wholly owns Badeel. The PIF holds a 16% stake in Aramco, which is also listed on the Tadawul.

    Acwa Power recently said it is raising SR7.1bn ($1.9bn) with a rights issue to finance its equity contributions in its growing portfolio of domestic and international energy and water projects, as part of its plan to triple managed assets by 2030.

    According to the prospectus for the rights issue, between 75% and 85% of the proceeds will go towards funding its share in current and upcoming projects, while up to 20% may be used for mergers and acquisitions. The remainder will support corporate activities and early-stage project development to accelerate delivery timelines.

     

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14258744/main.jpg
    Colin Foreman
  • Eni signs $1.35bn Algerian oil and gas deal

    14 July 2025

    Algeria’s state-owned oil and gas company Sonatrach and the Italian company Eni have signed a production-sharing hydrocarbons contract (PSC) estimated to be worth $1.35bn.

    The contract covers the exploration and exploitation of the Zemoul El-Kebir concession area, located in the Berkine Basin, approximately 300 kilometres east of Hassi Messaoud, according to a statement by Sonatrach.

    The deal with Eni is the latest in a string of high-profile agreements that Sonatrach has announced with international oil and gas companies.

    The contract with Eni was signed under Hydrocarbons Law No 1913 and extends for a period of 30 years, with an extendable option for an additional 10 years.

    It includes a seven-year exploration period, with $110m of the estimated $1.35bn investment budget expected to be used in the exploration phase.

    In its statement, Sonatrach said: “The work programme associated with this contract includes the use of innovative technological methods, including the latest digital solutions related to exploitation, in addition to the use of modern technologies to improve production and recover reserves.

    “It is worth noting that, within the framework of implementing this contract, preference is given to the use of local content and the use of subcontracting services from national operators.”

    Expected production from the area covered by the deal has been estimated at 415 million barrels of oil equivalent, including 9.3 billion cubic metres of gas, over the contract period.

    The signing of the final PSC with Eni follows a provisional deal that was signed between Sonatrach and Eni on 19 May 2024.

    As well as signing the PSC relating to the Zemoul El-Kebir concession area, the two parties also signed a gas agreement aimed at defining the terms of the hydrocarbons contract relating to the marketing of dry gas quantities from the operating area, intended for export.

    A framework agreement was also signed between Sonatrach and Eni Corporate University, aiming to develop the skills of Sonatrach employees and transfer knowledge through the Eni Corporate University training institution, for a period of three years.

    In June, Algeria awarded five out of the six oil and gas exploration licences it offered during its 2024 bidding round, a move viewed as a success by stakeholders in the country’s energy sector.

    The companies that were awarded blocks included France’s TotalEnergies, state-owned QatarEnergy, Eni and PTTEP of Thailand.

    The latest licensing round was followed by meetings between Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and delegations from US-based oil and gas companies ExxonMobil and Chevron.

    Project activity across Algeria’s energy, industrial and manufacturing sectors is steadily building as the country focuses on a vertically-integrated strategy that leverages the exploitation of its natural resources.

    READ THE JULY 2025 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    UAE and Turkiye expand business links; Renewed hope lies on the horizon for trouble-beset Levant region; Gulf real estate momentum continues even as concerns emerge

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the July 2025 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > PROJECTS MARKET: GCC projects market collapses
    > GULF PROJECTS INDEX: Gulf projects index continues climb
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/14254529/main.png
    Wil Crisp