Arab News, Wednesday, Jan 11, 2023 | Jamadi Al Thani 18, 1444
UAE’s Masdar to develop renewable energy projects in Kyrgyzstan
Emirates:
Abu Dhabi renewable energy firm Masdar has signed an agreement with Kyrgyzstan's
energy ministry to develop clean energy projects with a capacity to generate 1
gigawatt, it said on Tuesday.
The pipeline of projects will start with a
200-megawatt solar photovoltaic plant scheduled to begin operations by 2026,
Masdar said in a statement.
The company, established by UAE sovereign wealth
fund Mubadala in 2006, recently announced a new shareholding structure where
Taqa holds a 43 percent stake, Mubadala retained its 33 percent stake and Abu
Dhabi's National Oil Co. holds a 24 percent share.
Under the new structure, Masdar has a target to
grow to at least 100 GW of renewable energy capacity, mostly wind and solar, by
2030 and grow its new green hydrogen business — hydrogen produced by splitting
water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable electricity — to an annual
production capacity of up to 1 million tonnes by 2030.
Kyrgyzstan is looking to reduce its greenhouse gas
emissions by 44 percent by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
The Central Asian nation already produces around
90 percent of its electricity from clean energy sources, but almost exclusively
from aging hydropower plants.
Under the agreement, Masdar will explore and
invest in a wide range of renewable energy projects such as ground-mounted solar
PV, floating solar PV, and hydropower projects, the statement said.
The UAE, which is preparing to host the COP28
climate conference next year, has a target to reach net zero by 2050.