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A team comprising the local AlJomaih Energy & Water and France’s TotalEnergies Renewables has signed the power-purchase agreement (PPA) with Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) for the 300MW Rabigh 2 solar independent power project (IPP) in Saudi Arabia.

The Rabigh 2 IPP is one of four solar IPPs procured under round five of the kingdom’s National Renewable Energy Programme (NREP). 

The signing of the PPA coincided with the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to Riyadh on 3 December.

The local/French team proposed developing the project at a levelised electricity cost of  $c1.78 a kilowatt-hour (kWh).

It saw off competition from the second-lowest bidder, a team of the UAE’s Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar), South Korea’s Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) and the local Nesma Renewables, which offered $c1.89/kWh.

Other schemes under the NREP round five are the 2,000MW Al-Sadawi solar IPP, the 1,000MW Al-Masaa solar IPP and the 400MW Hinakiyah 2 solar IPP.

A developer team that includes Masdar, Kepco and China’s GD Power Development submitted a levelised cost of electricity of hals 4.847 ($c1.29) a kilowatt-hour (kWh) for the contract to develop the Al-Sadawi solar scheme.

SPPC signed the PPA for the Al-Sadawi solar IPP, which is located in the Eastern Province, on 18 November. 

SPPC received six proposals from companies for the contracts to develop and operate four solar photovoltaic (PV) IPP projects in Saudi Arabia in August.

According to SPPC, the lowest and second-lowest bidders in the remaining schemes under round five of the NREP are:

Al-Masaa solar IPP (Hail): 1,000MW

• L1: SPIC/EDF Renewables (France): $c1.36/kWh
• L2: AlJomaih Energy & Water (local) / TotalEnergies Renewables (France): $c1.40/kWh

Al-Hinakiyah 2 solar IPP (Medina): 400MW

• L1: SPIC/EDF: $c1.51/kWh
• L2: Masdar/Kepco/Nesma:  $c1.57/kWh

US/India-based Synergy Consulting is providing financial advisory services to SPPC for the NREP fifth-round tender. Germany’s Fichtner Consulting is providing technical consultancy services.

The round five solar PV IPPs take the total capacity of publicly tendered renewable energy projects in Saudi Arabia to over 10,300MW. Solar PV IPPs account for 79%, or about 8,100MW, of the total capacity.

Four wind IPPs, one of which has yet to be awarded, account for the remaining capacity.

SPPC recently prequalified companies that can bid for the contracts to develop wind and solar schemes under the sixth round of the NREP.

SPPC is procuring 30% of the kingdom’s target renewable energy by 2030. Saudi sovereign wealth vehicle the Public Investment Fund (PIF) is procuring the rest through the Price Discovery Scheme. The PIF has appointed Acwa Power, which it partly owns, as principal partner for these projects.