EDF partners with Elsewedy Electric on 100 MW of solar in Egypt

EDF Energies Nouevelles, the renewable energy subsidiary of France-based energy giant EDF, and the Egyptian manufacturing company Elsewedy Electric will construct a 100 MW solar park in Benban, southern Egypt.

Financial close for the project was reached on Oct. 25, EDF said in a press release. The installation was selected in Round 2 of Egypt’s FIT scheme and will sell power to local utility Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) under a 25-year contract.

The solar park will be located at the 1.8 GW Benban solar complex, where they are also building another 50 MW solar plant. Both projects, according to EDF, are being financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Proparco.

The project must still be approved by the Egyptian authorities. Construction of the plant is expected to begin in the first quarter of next year. “By expanding into Egypt, alongside the ELSEWEDY ELECTRIC Group, a high regional profile, EDF Energies Nouvelles strengthens its position in the North African renewable energy market. The Benban solar project ties in with the EDF Group’s goal of doubling its renewable capacity in France and worldwide, by 2030 under its CAP 2030 strategic plan”, said EDF Energies Nouvelles’ CEO Antoine Cahuzac.

The 1.8 GW Benban solar complex represents the larger portion of the 2 GW of PV capacity allocated by the Egyptian government through its FIT scheme for solar.