EDF Renewables, Korea Western Power (KOWEPO) and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar have secured a successful financial close of the Al Ajban Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Independent Power Producer (IPP) project. This is a 1.5 GW project in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Masdar owns 60% of share, while EDF Renewables and KOWEPO have 20% share. The partnership concluded a 30-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with EWEC, which is the Emirates Water and Electricity Company. The agreement designates financing, construction, and operation of the plant.
Bank commitments from BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole CIB, Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC Middle East, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, or SMBC, and Export-Import Bank of Korea, KEXIM, have secured the financing of the project.
According to the CEO of EWEC, such a project will be an advancement of the energy transition in the United Arab Emirates to pursue the desire to expand generation capacity in solar PV to 7.5 GW by 2030. According to him, “the Al Ajban Solar PV plant will significantly reduce carbon emissions in this region and is estimated to cut more than 2.4 million tons of CO2 annually”.
Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, Masdar chief executive said in his speech that: “Partnerships will lead to the achievement of global renewable energy targets and partnerships are what we are looking at to finally get Abu Dhabi established as a leader in large-scale solar power.” The other large two major ones besides Al Ajban project are already in the region.
“This large scale renewable energy project is fully in line with EDF’s strategy for innovative, carbon-free solutions,” said Beatrice Buffon, Vice-President of EDF Group. Hyungduck Park, CEO of KOWEPO commented on the success in “Contributing to renewable energy targets within the UAE”.
The Al Ajban Solar PV plant, which is situated 70 kilometers northeast of Abu Dhabi city, will thus use about 3 million solar panels mounted on single-axis trackers. The plant has an estimated capacity to power approximately 160,000 houses by the third quarter of 2026. This project is a part of the UAE’s Net-Zero 2050 initiative and is one step closer in adopting sustainable energy in the region.
