Arab News, Thursday, Aug 18, 2022 | Muharram 20, 1444
ACWA Power to sign $2.4bn deal for 1,500MW wind project in Uzbekistan
Saudi Arabia: ACWA Power Co. said it
will sign today a $2.4 billion deal with the government of Uzbekistan for a
1,500-megawatt wind project, a bourse filing revealed.
“This project would be the biggest single site
onshore wind project in the region and the world and will contribute 19 percent
to Uzbekistan’s overall renewable energy goals,” the PIF-owned energy giant said
in a bourse filing.
To be located in Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan,
the facility seeks to power 1.65 million households and offset 2.4 million tons
of carbon emissions per year.
Expected to achieve a financial close by the end
of 2023, the project is likely to be fully commissioned by the first quarter of
2026.
The agreement duration is 25 years and will be
signed with the Uzbekistani Ministry of Energy and Ministry of Investment &
Foreign Trade.
This comes as part of ACWA Power’s mission to
deliver electricity and desalinated water reliably at a low cost, thereby
contributing to the sustainable, social and economic development of communities.
Established in 2004, ACWA Power’s portfolio
includes 64 assets with an investment value of SR252 billion ($67 billion).
It produces 42.6 gigawatts of power and 6.4
million cubic meters per day of desalinated water delivered on a bulk basis to
address the needs of state utilities and industries.
On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan signed
over 10 investment agreements, worth over SR45 billion ($12 billion), during the
fourth meeting of the Saudi-Uzbek Business Council held in Jeddah.
The agreements covered various sectors and
included a number of deals between Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Investment and
Foreign Trade, Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Uzbekistan and
ACWA Power.
February, ACWA Power broke ground on Uzbekistan’s
first publicly tendered 100-megawatt wind project, valued at $108 million.
The Nukus wind project is located in the
north-western part of the country and is expected to reach a financial close by
the third quarter of 2022.
It will contribute 1.25 percent to Uzbekistan’s
overall renewable energy goals and will power 120,000 households and offset
200,000 tonnes of carbon emissions per year upon operation in 2024.
Also, the Saudi firm announced earlier its start
of operations at the Umm Al-Quwain desalination plant in the UAE.
The $797-million plant, known as Umm Al-Quwain
IWP, has the capacity to generate 682,000 cubic meters per day of desalinated
potable water.
This comes as ACWA Power seeks to deliver reliable
and cost-effective delineated water projects.