EDF Group, an integrated electricity company, said it has joined a consortium led by Abu Dhabi future energy company Masdar which is developing the 800-MW third phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, UAE.

The entry into the consortium was made possible by its subsidiary EDF Energies Nouvelles, a market leader in renewable energy electricity.

The agreement, formalising the company’s entry into the consortium via its subsidiary EDF Energies Nouvelles, a market leader in renewable energy electricity, was signed today (March 22) by Jean-Bernard Levy, the chairman and chief executive of EDF Group, and Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, the CEO of Masdar.

Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, the managing director and chief executive of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), Michel Miraillet, ambassador of France to the UAE, and Antoine Cahuzac, Group senior executive vice president for renewable energies at EDF Group and chief executive of EDF Energies Nouvelles, witnessed the signing at Dewa headquarters.  

Welcoming EDF into the consortium, Al Tayer said: "We are happy to see more international companies joining the Masdar-led consortium for the 800 MW third phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park, which will be constructed based on the IPP model to achieve sustainable development."

The solar park has attracted the interest of global business and energy companies, which reflects the trust and interest from international investors in large projects adopted by the Dubai Government, encouraged by the favourable existing regulatory and legislative frameworks in Dubai that enable public-private partnerships, he stated.

The 16 sq-km 800 MW photovoltaic plant will be delivered in three stages. The 200 MW Phase A is currently under construction, and is due for completion by April next year.

The 300 MW Phase B is expected to come on stream in April 2019, while the final 300 MW tranche, Phase C, is scheduled for April 2020.

The project was awarded last year at a price of 2.99 US cents per kilowatt-hour, a then record-low tariff for solar power generation, said a statement from Masdar.

The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park, the largest single-site solar park in the world, to be built at a total investment of $14 billion, boasts a planned capacity of 5,000 MW by 2030.

It will displace as much as 6.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually upon completion in 2030, it stated.

On the agreement, Al Ramahi said: "With construction of Phase Three now well under way, we are proud to bring EDF Group into the consortium realising what will be the largest single-site solar power plant in the world on completion, and to benefit from EDF Energies Nouvelles’ extensive international experience in renewable energy deployment, particularly in emerging markets."

Jean-Bernard Lévy said EDF was very proud to be supporting the energy transition in the Middle East, thanks to ambitious projects involving renewable energy, like Dewa III.

"They demonstrate our know-how as a market leader in low-carbon growth and reinforce the Group’s development in fast-growing countries, within the context of our Cap 2030 strategy," he noted.

Cahuzac said the Middle East is a strategic area for EDF Group which has strong ambitions for renewable energies.

"EDF Group, through EDF Energies Nouvelles’ teams, is pleased to participate in one of the world’s largest solar initiatives launched by DEWA. This 800 MW solar project realised alongside Masdar, a key player in renewables, seals a major long-term partnership," he added.-TradeArabia News Service