Saudi developer ACWA Power has signed a $123 million financing package to develop the 200-MW Kom Ombo project, a utility-scale solar power plant in Egypt.
Financing institutions for this ACWA Power project include European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund), African Development Bank (AfDB), AfDB’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA), Green Climate Fund (GCF), Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) and Arab Bank.
The package comprises loans of up to $36 million from the EBRD, $14.6 million from the OPEC Fund, $14.4 million from the AfDB, $34.5 million from the GCF, $14.8 million from Arab Bank and $10 million from the SEFA under the COVID-19 IPP relief program. The project already has equity bridge loans of $14 million from the EBRD and $45 million from the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP).
“ACWA Power’s successful acquisition of financing support for our renewable project is a significant milestone. We’re fully committed to fast-tracking the project’s development while staying true to Egypt’s renewable energy targets,” commented Marco Arcelli, CEO of ACWA Power.
“The Kom Ombo solar project further demonstrates the private sector’s active involvement in Egypt’s energy transition. This accomplishment highlights the shared vision and purpose of various global financing institutions in achieving the Republic’s targets, which would not be possible without the trust and support of the government, the Egyptian people, and communities,” he added.
The new Kom Ombo plant will be located less than 20 kilometers from Africa’s biggest solar park, the 1,465-MW Benban complex—another ACWA Power development—and is expected to be commercially operational in January 2024. Once fully functional, the new utility-scale plant will serve 130,000 households.
While the financing documentation was originally signed in April 2021 with the EBRD, the OPEC Fund, the Green Climate Fund (GCF), African Development Bank (AfDB) and Arab Bank, the dynamics in global supply chains due to Covid19 altered the dynamics for the development of solar plants. This resulted in the extension for Kom Ombo’s project execution.
The Kom Ombo plant will contribute to the Egyptian government’s target to generate 42 percent of the country’s electricity from renewable energy sources by 2035 while delivering one of the lowest generation tariffs in Africa.