Egypt's $500M solar plant to power 300,000 homes
The country's authorities announced that a $500 million solar power plant was inaugurated in Aswan, Egypt, on Saturday. This initiative is part of efforts to boost renewable energy production following last year's significant power outages.
2:02 PM EST, December 15, 2024
The Abydos solar power plant, developed by the Dubai-based energy company AMEA Power, has a capacity of 500 megawatts and was completed in just 18 months. According to Al Arabiya, it is expected to generate 1,500 gigawatt hours of clean energy annually, sufficient to power approximately 300,000 households while reducing CO2 emissions by 782,300 tons.
Egypt invests in solar energy: "New strategy"
During the power plant's opening ceremony, Egypt's Prime Minister, Moustafa Madbouly, emphasized that this project is a "key step in increasing the use of renewable energy in Egypt" and is part of the "national strategy" to reduce reliance on traditional energy sources.
He also added that this project supports the government's efforts to minimize summer power outages, which have become frequent during periods of high electricity demand.
Funding for the project comes, among other sources, from the Dutch Development Bank (FMO) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The main contractor for the project is the Chinese company Power China.
Work on the power plant site began in March 2023. At the peak of construction, 3,500 people were working on-site. The power plant covers an area of 4 square miles and consists of over one million solar panels, 1,920 inverters, and 64 transformer stations. The two main transformers, the largest of their kind in Africa and the Middle East, have a capacity of 300 megawatts each and weigh 562,200 pounds.
Egypt at risk of blackout
Last summer, Egypt faced daily power outages lasting up to three hours caused by the high demand for cooling during heatwaves. AMEA Power Chairman Hussain Al Nowais noted that the plant will expedite the implementation of the green energy strategy in Egypt and help address the energy shortages experienced last year. The first electricity from the plant was delivered to the national power grid last week.
AMEA Power is a Dubai-based energy company that specializes in renewable energy projects, such as solar and wind power plants. The company is committed to developing and operating energy projects worldwide and aims to increase access to clean and sustainable energy.
