Egypt continues to attract the attention of the renewable energy industry, after the Terra Sola Consortium said it plans to invest US$3.5 billion in the country’s solar sector.
The agreement was signed with the state-owned Egyptian Electricity Holding Co. The Terra Sola Consortium comprises Terra Sola Ventures, a German-owned company headquartered in Bahrain that is an investor and developer of specialized solar power projects in the Middle East and North Africa region, and Terra Nex Financial Engineering, a Swiss wealth management company which specializes in asset management and venture capital activities.
The Terra Sola Consortium plans to develop up to 2,0000 megawatts of solar capacity in various phases on a build-own-operate-transfer basis in Egypt. The amount also includes an investment in a 200-MW module and inverter and manufacturing facility.
It will also extend financial support to existing Egyptian small and medium businesses in the fields related to PV technologies.
“We are proud to consider Egypt as a key strategic market for investment and are committed to deploying our solar power expertise and financial resources to help ensure the Project’s successful execution and timely completion,” said David Heimhofer, Chairman of Terra Sola. “This milestone Project will bring together solid European expertise including Swiss financial strength and German solar technical knowhow.
“For our US$3.5 billion social value investment, success is measured by the amount of qualitative and quantitative change we can bring about to improve the quality of life for the people of Egypt” concluded Mr. Heimhofer.
SkyPower Global and International Gulf Development also signed an agreement to with the government to develop 3,000MW of solar projects by 2019.
Earlier this week, Norway-based developer Scatec Solar said it will develop as much as 200 megawatts of solar capacity in Egypt after securing the right to develop a 50-MW plant in the country. Egypt’s wind sector has also been attracting interest. Last week, Siemens signed an agreement to set up 2,000Mw of wind-energy project in the country and build a blade manufacturing plant.
Egypt has a 20% renewable energy target by 2020. The country also about 552MW of wind and 20MW of solar generating capacity, from 31GW of installed generating capacity.