400 MW PV project in Egypt reaches financial close

Scatec Solar announced the completion of financial negotiations for six projects, which are being jointly funded by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the UN Green Climate Fund, Dutch development bank FMO, the Islamic Development Bank and the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector.

Scatec Solar will act as EPC provider for all of the projects, as well as providing O&M and asset management services.

The six projects have a combined capacity of 400 MW, and involve total investment of $450 million. Scatec Solar and partners signed a 25-year PPA with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company in April 2017, and this week delivered the required conditions for the PPA to come into effect. Construction on the projects is expected to begin in early 2018.

The United Nations Green Climate contributed $48 million to the projects, its largest contribution to a single recipient to date, and the first under its cooperation with the EBRD. “This is a big step forward,” says Ayaan Adam, the Green Climate Fund’s Private Sector Facility Director. “It shows the potential for public and private climate finance to drive the energy transition.”

The EBRD has been a major backer for the entirety of the Benban Solar Park, which is being constructed as several different projects, which will eventually add up to 1.8 GW, making it the largest solar installation in the world.

Scatec Solar’s energy production business has grown strongly in 2017, and the company has reported revenue rises for the past two consecutive quarters. On top of this project in Egypt, Scatec currently has a pipeline of 394 MW under construction in Malaysia and the Americas.