Renewables giant Acwa Power has received the commercial operation certificate to begin operating Phase C of the 900 MW Shuaa Energy 3 solar project in Dubai — a part of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (MBR) solar park in the UAE, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul on Thursday.

Ironing out the details: Commercial operations are set to be launched at the solar project’s Phase C, which will have a capacity of 300 MW, Acwa Power said. The complete plant, which has an investment ticket of USD 570 mn, has achieved commercial operation with a total capacity of 900 MW, it said. Acwa Power expects the financial impact of the commercial operations at Phase C to be reflected on its financials in Q3 this year. The MBR solar park, which is the world’s largest single-site solar park using the IPP model, will have a production capacity of 5 GW by 2030 and will help slash 6.5 mn tons of carbon emissions annually upon completion.

A look at ownership: Shuaa Energy 3 is a special purpose vehicle (SPV) set up to develop the fifth phase of the MBR solar park. Dubai state utility Dewa owns a 60% stake and is the sole off-taker of power, while Acwa Power holds a 24% stake. The Gulf Investment Corporation holds the remaining 16%.

REMEMBER- Dewa + Masdar reached a financial close on Shuaa Energy 4: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) and UAE’s state owned renewables giant Masdar reached a financial close on the 1.8 GW sixth phase of the (MBR) Solar Park in February. The total production output will increase to 4.66 GW by 2026 — up from the previously reported 4.2 GW. Dewa established a JV with Masdar for the plant — with the former holding 60% of the company, allocating some AED 5.5 bn to establish PV panels under an independent power producer (IPP) model. The project — which will be constructed by India’s Larsen & Toubro’s (L&T) construction arm — is expected to kick off operations in phases between 4Q 2024 and 2026.

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