QatarEnergy has awarded an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for its industrial cities solar power project (IC Solar), which includes two large-scale photovoltaic (PV) solar power plants to generate 875 MW of renewable electricity.

The plants are to be built in Mesaieed Industrial City (MIC) and Ras Laffan Industrial City (RLIC) and are expected to start electricity production by the end of 2024.

The announcement was made at a special ceremony held in Doha today to sign the EPC contract between QatarEnergy Renewable Solutions and Samsung C&T, which has been selected as the contractor to execute the project.

QatarEnergy Renewable Solutions is a wholly owned affiliate of QatarEnergy tasked with investing in renewable energy and sustainability projects and products within the State of Qatar and across the globe.

Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, President and CEO of QatarEnergy witnessed the signing of the EPC contract. Attendees in the ceremony included Sechul Oh, President and CEO of Samsung C&T Corporation and other senior executives from QatarEnergy and Samsung C&T.

Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi said: “This IC Solar project is a major step in the implementation of our strategy to diversify Qatar’s energy resources and to increase the reliance on high-efficiency renewable energy, which is a cornerstone for a sustainable future.

“It also reaffirms our commitment towards delivery on QatarEnergy’s Sustainability Strategy and our mid-term target of having 5 GW of solar generated power by 2035. It also gives me great pleasure that this landmark project marks the first investment for our newly formed, wholly owned subsidiary, QatarEnergy Renewable Solutions, which will invest in and hold all our renewables and other sustainable initiatives going forward.”

This is the second utility-scale solar project in Qatar. Along with Al Kharsaa Solar PV Power Plant, which is currently under construction, the IC Solar project will increase Qatar’s renewable energy generation capacity to 1.675 GW by 2024.

The project will utilise high-efficiency bifacial modules mounted on single-axis trackers as well as cleaning robots that will operate daily to minimize losses due to soiling by removing dust from the PV modules. This will maximize the additional energy yield produced by the bifacial modules.

The project’s power generation capacity is strategically distributed between the two main industrial cities in Qatar, MIC and RLIC. MIC will have a 417 MW plant and RLIC will have a 458 MW plant. The two plants will occupy a combined area of 10 sq km.

The QR2.3 billion ($630 million) IC Solar project will result in direct emissions reduction of more than 28 million tons of CO2 over its lifetime. The output of both plants will contribute to the reduction of QatarEnergy’s GHG footprints from its facilities in RLIC and MIC, most notable its NFE and NFS LNG expansion projects, in addition to expanding grid capacity in other locations. – TradeArabia News Service