Consortiums of TotalEnergies, a global integrated energy company, and EDF Renewables, a specialist in renewable energy production, have secured contracts from Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) to build 1,700MW solar parks in the kingdom.
Announcing this, SPPC said as per the deal, TotalEnergies will develop a 300MW solar park in the Rabigh Industrial City in partnership with Saudi developer Aljomaih Energy and Water Company, while EDF Renewables will build two solar parks - 1,000MWac Al Masaa and 400MWac Al Henakiyah 2 - with consortium partner Chinese State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC).
These comes as part of a series of deals announced yesterday (December 3) during a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to Riyadh.
The French duo also sealed a 25-year power purchase agreement with the SPPC for the projects, which have been awarded on a build-own-operate (BOO) model as part of Round 5 of the kingdom's National Renewable Energy Program (NREP) which is supervised by the Ministry of Energy aiming to achieve an optimal energy mix for electricity production by having gas and renewable energy at approximately 50% each by 2030 and reduce dependence on liquid fuels in electricity generation in line with Saudi Vision 2030.
TotalEnergies said the Rabigh2 plant will be developed, built, owned and operated by the consortium with a connection to the grid planned in 2026.
An active player in the region, the French group has identified the Middle East as a priority location for its future green growth.
"Together with our partner Aljomaih, we are thrilled to contribute to Saudi Arabia's target of increasing the share of renewables in its energy mix," said Patrick Pouyanné Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies.
"Through our large participation in refining and petrochemical Satorp and Amiral projects, TotalEnergies is a close partner of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia," he stated.
"This new project is another example of our multi-energy strategy to accompany Oil & Gas producing countries in their energy transition. This also demonstrates our ability to provide more energy with less emissions, while contributing to our growth in electricity and renewable energy," he added.
Ibrahim Al Jomaih, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Aljomaih Energy and Water Company, said: "We are proud to lead the development of the 300MW Rabigh 2 solar project, together with TotalEnergies, highlighting our shared commitment towards supporting Saudi Arabia's Green Initiative and Vision 2030."
"Leveraging our local market expertise and global reach, our mission is to play our role in advancing the energy transition underscored by our philosophy of partnership and excellence, and we would like to take this opportunity to thank the Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) for their continued support and trust in Aljomaih Energy & Water," he added.
This renewable project is a new milestone for TotalEnergies in Saudi Arabia where TotalEnergies is currently building the 119 MW Wadi Al Dawasir solar power plant, which will start operation in early 2025.
