Masdar has signed an agreement with Egyptian partners to develop a 10GW onshore wind project in the North African country.
President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and President Abdel Fattah El Sisi of Egypt witnessed the signing of an agreement between Masdar, along with its Infinity Power joint venture with Infinity, Egypt’s main renewable energy developer, and Hassan Allam Utilities, to develop project.
The memorandum of understanding was signed by Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, UAE Special Envoy for Climate, and Chairman of Masdar, and Mohamed Shaker El-Markabi, Egypt’s Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy, on the sidelines of COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh.
Al Jaber said: “The scale of this mega 10GW onshore wind project – one of the largest winds farms in the world – is a testament to the renewable energy ambitions of the United Arab Emirates and the Republic of Egypt, and demonstrates Masdar’s status as a global leader in clean energy.”
When completed, the wind farm will produce 47,790 gigawatt hours of clean energy annually.
The project will be part of Egypt’s Green Corridor initiative, a grid dedicated to renewable energy projects.
It will contribute to Egypt’s goal of ensuring renewable energy makes up 42% of its energy mix by 2035.
The wind farm will also save Egypt an estimated $5bn in annual natural gas costs and help create as many as 100,000 jobs.
Direct employment in the construction phase is estimated at around 30,000, with as many as 70,000 people being employed indirectly.
After construction, around 3200 jobs will be added for operation and maintenance.
Nayer Fouad, CEO of Infinity Power, said: “It has always been our endeavour to create opportunities where organisations and governments can make the shift to a more sustainable and renewable source of energy.
“We are confident that this project will greatly benefit the country and enable Egypt to take great steps forward on its journey in becoming a more sustainable and green nation.
“We look forward to expanding our portfolio of sustainable energy solutions that benefit not only Egypt, but provide the entire continent with a clean, green future.”
In April, Masdar and Hassan Allam Utilities signed two MoUs with Egyptian state-backed organisations to cooperate on the development of 4GW green hydrogen production plants in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and on the Mediterranean coast.
In the first phase of the project, a green hydrogen manufacturing facility will be developed and operational by 2026, able to produce 100,000 tonnes of e-methanol annually for bunkering in the Suez Canal.
The electrolyser facilities could be extended to up to 4GW by 2030 to produce 2.3 million tonnes of green ammonia for export as well as supply green hydrogen for local industries.