Energy

ACWA Power and PIF Unit Jointly Invest $3.25 Billion in Three Solar Projects

by Eddie Rayner May 25, 2023

ACWA Power, a unit of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), has signed power purchase agreements with the Saudi Power Procurement Company to develop and operate three new solar projects across the Kingdom.

Mohammed Al Balaihed, Head of Energy & Utilities at the PIF, said: “The three new solar projects are part of PIF’s commitment to developing 70% of Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy by 2030, in line with the National Renewable Energy Program.”

ACWA Power and PIF’s unit, the Water and Electricity Holding Company (Badeel), will jointly own the solar projects, which are estimated to have a total capacity of 4.55 gigatonnes (GWac) of renewable energy, enough to power around 750,000 households.

Saudi Arabia wants to raise renewables’ contribution to its energy mix to roughly 50% by 2030

“The Ar Rass 2, Saad 2 and Al Kahfah projects have a capacity of approximately 2,000 megawatts (MWac), 1,125MWac and 1,425MWac of renewable power respectively,” ACWA Power and Badeel said in a joint statement.

Saudi Arabia wants to raise renewables’ contribution to its energy mix to roughly 50% by 2030, with the remaining supplied by high-efficiency gas-fired power facilities. PIF is currently building five projects with a combined capacity of 8GW and more than $6 billion in investments from the fund and its partners.

ACWA Power’s portfolio of solar projects in the Kingdom now stands at 11

Following the inclusion of the three new projects, ACWA Power’s portfolio of solar projects in the Kingdom now stands at 11, with a total capacity of 12 GW. The power company’s overall renewable capacity portfolio now stands at 23.4 GW.

Meanwhile, ACWA and Badeel struck an agreement to build the Middle East’s largest solar power facility. The 2,060 MW solar project will be completed in Q1 2025 in Al Shuaibah, Saudi Arabia’s Mecca province. The project’s electricity output is planned to power 350,000 homes. ACWA is receiving funding for sustainable energy initiatives from Saudi Arabia’s Shareek program, which encourages companies to participate in establishing new sectors within the Kingdom.