Dubai: A new contract has been signed for the fourth phase of the Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest Concentrated Solar Power investment project in the world.
The Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract for the 700 megawatt (MW) fourth phase was signed in Shanghai, China, between Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power and China’s Shanghai Electric, the project’s main contractor.
Saeed Mohammad Al Tayer, CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), witnessed the signing of the contract. The ceremony was attended by Dr Ali Obaid Al Daheri, UAE Ambassador to China; Turki Al Madi, Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to China; and other top officials and dignitaries.
“I am pleased to be here today in Shanghai for the signing of the EPC contract … We are here today to show the strong ties between our two great nations, which have been formed because of our shared values and our trading and economic interests. Bilateral trade between the UAE and China has already exceeded $35 billion [Dh128.4 billion] in the first nine months of 2017,” said Al Tayer in his speech during the signing ceremony.
“Today’s signing ceremony is an important milestone that supports the directives of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan; His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai; and Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to achieve the objectives of the UAE Centennial 2071, the UAE Vision 2021, and the Dubai Plan 2021 to secure a happy and better future.”
Considerable progress
He added: “Last month, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid gave the go-ahead to commence the fourth phase of [the Solar Park], the largest single-site solar park in the world, based on the Independent Power Producer model. This marks considerable progress in our efforts to achieve the objective of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 to provide 75 per cent of Dubai’s total power output from clean sources by 2050. This will transform the emirate into a global hub for clean energy and the green economy; and support its objective of becoming the city with the lowest carbon footprint in the world,” he added.
“With a planned capacity of 5,000MW by 2030, and a total investment of $13.6 billion (Dh50 billion), the [Solar Park] seeks to accelerate our diversification into clean energy. It is a key pillar in our strategy, considering that our ambitious targets require at least 42,000MW of renewable energy by 2050.”
