The total investment of the project can reach 500 million dollars

Emirati company working on wind farm in Egypt

photo_camera Wind farm

Official sources at the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy revealed that an Emirati consortium is currently studying the implementation of a wind farm, with investments of about $500 million. The coalition has submitted a request to the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) to allocate land for the purpose, and the authority has already agreed to it. The total capacity of the station is about 500 megawatts. The consortium is carrying out studies that will take two years and that include measuring wind speed, monitoring bird migration and studying the soil for the project, which will take place in the Gulf of Suez region.

The station is expected to implement the BOO system (Build, Own, Operate), provided that the coalition sells the energy produced to the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company, the operator of the national grid, entrusted with the purchase of energy. The area of land allocated for the establishment of the project — in cooperation with the private sector under the usufructuary right system — is 7,872 km. The sources pointed out that the average selling price of renewable energy is currently declining, ranging between $0.02 to $0.025 per kilowatt hour. 

Egypt is rich in natural resources, including wind and solar energy, which makes it one of the largest producers of renewable energy. The total installed capacity of renewable energies is close to 20 percent of the maximum load. Egypt plans to increase its total production of renewable energy to about 20 percent of the total electricity generated by 2022, of which 12 percent from wind, 6 percent from hydroelectricity, and 2 percent from solar.

A good destination for "green" investments 

Egypt is a good destination for renewable energies. The Spanish company Siemens Gamesa has made investments in wind farms in the North African country in recent years. Last October it committed to the construction of the 250-megawatt West Bakr wind farm and undertook to operate and maintain it for 15 years. The wind farm was scheduled to be operational from 2021, although the coronavirus pandemic may delay the deadline.  

"West Bakr will help achieve the ambitious renewable energy targets that the Egyptian government has set for the coming years and will enable us to support the country's development, both from an environmental and an economic and social point of view," said Alfonso Faubel, CEO Onshore of Siemens Gamesa.  
 

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