Abu Dhabi's Masdar said it has joined hands with Taaleri Energia, a Greek company investing in utility-scale wind and solar assets, to develop a 65MW solar photovoltaic project. 

 

The project, which is Masdar's first investment in the Greek market, will be managed through its JV firm Masdar-Taaleri Generation (MTG).

 

The co-development was announced at a virtual signing ceremony, attended by Dionyssios Zois, Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic to the UAE, and Sulaiman Hamed Salem AlMazroui, UAE Ambassador to the Hellenic Republic.

 

According to Masdar, the project will be developed by MTG alongside local partners, the Constantakopoulos family and Autohellas.

 

"We are extremely pleased for today’s virtual signing of the agreement between two prominent Greek business groups, the Constantakopoulos family and Autohellas, and the joint venture between Masdar, the UAE’s renewable energy leader, and Finland’s Taaleri Energia, a prominent international player in clean energy, to establish a solar photovoltaic project in Greece," Zois said.

 

"We congratulate all the business groups involved and specifically Masdar on their very first investment in the Greek renewable energy sector and we hope that this agreement will pave the way for additional Emirati investments in Greece, either from Masdar or other UAE entities," he added.

 

AlMazroui, in turn, said: "Today’s signing is a milestone occasion that will enhance the longstanding cooperation between Greece and the UAE. We are pleased to support the country’s climate change efforts and contribute to their goal of producing 35 percent of their energy mix from renewables by 2030."

 

"We look forward to strengthening our relationship further by expanding our bilateral collaboration in the near future," he noted.

 

The project is located in the region of Viotia, approximately 65 kilometers north of the Greek capital, Athens, and is in the advanced development stage, with construction expected to be completed in 2023. It is intended that the project will participate in Greece’s feed-in-tariff premium auction scheme in late 2021.

 

CEO Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi said: "As Masdar celebrates its 15th anniversary in the renewable energy sector, we are proud to be expanding our global presence by making the first investment in Greece."

 

"We look forward to working with our partners and leveraging our international expertise in clean energy projects to support the diversification of the country’s energy mix, while advancing our common climate change mitigation goals," he stated.

 

Kai Rintala, Managing Director of Taaleri Energia, said: "This is a high-quality solar PV development project in one of the Taaleri SolarWind II fund’s key markets for solar investments and further demonstrates the value of our joint venture and cooperation with Masdar."

 

When complete, the solar PV plant will produce over 100 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity annually, he added.

 

Achilles V. Constantakopoulos said: "We are proud to be part of this multi-stakeholder venture for the development of a significant photovoltaic project in our country, and to join reputable groups which are leaders in their respective fields."

 

"Together, we can contribute to Greece’s and our group’s sustainability targets, in maximizing the use of renewable energy," he added.-TradeArabia News Service