EDF Renewables, KOWEPO and Masdar Announce Financial Closing of Al Ajban Solar Project in Abu Dhabi

The project company, led by EDF Renewables and Korea Western Power (KOWEPO), alongside their partner Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar, has announced the successful financial closing of the 1.5 gigawatt (GW) AC Al Ajban Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Independent Power Producer (IPP) project in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

Following a successful bid submission, the project company owned by EDF Renewables and KOWEPO (20% stake each) as lead members, and Masdar as local shareholder (60% stake) signed a 30-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC), and will design, finance, build and operate the plant.

Financing for the project has been secured from six top-tier banks and financial institutions: BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole CIB, Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC Middle East, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM).

Othman Al Ali, Chief Executive Officer of EWEC, said: "Al Ajban Solar PV is a further example of EWEC’s industry leading strategic advancement of world-leading solar power projects, and stewardship of the UAE’s energy transition.

"Solar power is one of the most cost-effective and low-carbon-intensive solutions for electricity generation, and we are rapidly commissioning and deploying new utility-scale solar power projects, to enable the generation of 7.5GW of solar PV by 2030, in addition to projects in support of UAE’s next-generation energy infrastructure."

Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, Chief Executive Officer of Masdar said: "Our valued partnership with EDF, EWEC and KOWEPO on the Al Ajban Solar PV plant highlights the importance of harnessing our mutual experience and expertise to deliver utility-scale clean energy projects.

"Partnerships are vital to the energy transition and to achieving the objective of tripling global renewable capacity by 2030 set out in the UAE Consensus."

Beatrice Buffon, EDF Group Vice-President, International Division, Chairwoman & CEO of EDF Renewables, said: "This large-scale renewable energy project is fully in line with EDF’s strategy to provide innovative, carbon-free solutions in the UAE, such as pumped hydro storage, large-scale and distributed solar, BESS and transmission infrastructure."

The state-of-the-art project, located approximately 70 kilometres North-East of Abu Dhabi city, will have a capacity of 1.5GW.

Once fully commissioned in Q3 2026, the Al Ajban Solar PV IPP will be one of the world’s largest single-site solar power plants, deploying approximately 3 million solar panels mounted on single-axis trackers to generate enough electricity for approximately 160,000 homes across the UAE.

Upon full commercial operation, the plant is expected to reduce Abu Dhabi’s CO2 emissions by more than 2.4 million tonnes per year.

The Al Ajban Solar PV power plant is part of the UAE Net-Zero by 2050 strategic initiative and is the third utility–scale solar park in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, making the Emirate a pioneer in renewable energy deployment.