02/12/2025 02:30 AST
Acwa Power, the world's largest private water desalination company, has announced that along with its key partners - Water and Electricity Holding Company (Badeel), a wholly-owned company of Saudi wealth fund PIF, and Saudi Aramco Power Company (Sapco), a unit of Aramco - it has achieved a financial close to develop seven giga-scale projects in Saudi Arabia.
With a total investment value of $8.2 billion, these projects - comprising five solar photovoltaic (solar PV) plants and two wind energy projects - are expected to have a combined capacity of 15GW of renewable power.
These are Bisha (3 GW solar PV, located in Asir Province), Humaij (3 GW solar PV, located in Madinah Province), Khulis (2 GW solar PV, located in Makkah Province), Afif1 and Afifi2 (both 2 GW solar PV projects located in Riyadh Province).
The win projects are Starah, a 2GW wind project located in Riyadh and Shaqra,a 1GW wind located in Riyadh Province.
Acwa Power, also a leader in energy transition, and a first mover in green hydrogen, said they are an important component in Saudi Arabia's NREP, led and supervised by the Ministry of Energy, and are reflected in PIF's commitment to develop 70% of Saudi Arabia's Renewable Energy Target Capacity by 2030.
As part of the kingdom's National Renewable Energy Program (NREP), all the seven renewable energy plants will be jointly owned by Acwa Power, Badeel and Sapco, with the Saudi Power Procurement Company as the procurer and off-taker for the projects.
All these projects are expected to be operational in the second half of 2027 and first half of 2028.
Marco Arcelli, Chief Executive Officer of Acwa Power, said: "Achieving financial close for this portfolio of renewable energy projects under the National Renewable Energy Program, including our first two wind projects in Saudi Arabia, marks a decisive step forward in realising the kingdom's ambitious renewable goals."
"With this milestone, we are accelerating towards bringing these giga-scale projects to life, which directly contribute to energy security in the kingdom," stated Arcelli.
"Beyond lower-carbon power generation, these projects will potentially create thousands of jobs, stimulate domestic supply chains, and enable significant technology transfer to Saudi talent through dedicated training programmes," he noted.
"As the largest agreement under the NREP, this landmark collaboration underscores the nation's steadfast commitment to building a more resilient and sustainable energy landscape," he added.
Sultan AlNabulsi, Acting Chief Executive Officer at Badeel, said the signing marks a major milestone in Badeel's journey as an anchor sponsor in the renewable energy projects mandated under the Public Investment Fund, reaffirming its commitment to advancing Saudi Arabia's renewable energy ambitions. "This achievement reinforces Badeel's position as a reliable renewables platform and strengthens the confidence in its long-term value-creation capability," he stated.
Waleed Al Saif, Aramco SVP of New Energies, said: "The financial close for such giga-scale solar and wind projects marks a significant step forward towards the kingdom's objectives under the National Renewable Energy Program."
"This 15 GW portfolio, featuring some of the largest renewable developments in the region, is a demonstration of what may be accomplished through strong partnership and a shared vision. This achievement not only reinforces our dedication to a diversified energy future, but also supports the journey toward our net-zero ambitions," he stated.
PIF, through Badeel, and its partners are currently sponsoring several projects with a total cumulative capacity of 28.6 GW, involving more than $17 billion in investments.
These joint projects, which also include Haden, Muwayh, Al Khushaybi, Sudair, Shuaibah 2, Ar Rass 2, Al Kahfah, and Saad 2, enable and support the local private sector through domestic supply chain participation.
With the addition of these new projects, Acwa Power's solar and wind portfolio in Saudi Arabia now stands at 21 projects, representing more than 34 GW of combined renewable capacity. It also brings Acwa Power's total renewable capacity portfolio to 51.9 GW.
The $5.9 billion senior debt financing for the Bisha, Humaij, Khulis, Afif1, Afif2, Starah, and Shaqra plants was funded by a consortium of local, regional and international banks.
These include Ajman Bank, Al Masraf, Alinma Bank, Arab National Bank, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, China Minsheng Bank, Emirates NBD Bank, Eurobank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, HSBC Bank Middle East Limited, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited, KfW IPEX-Bank GmbH, Mizuho Bank, Natixis, Piraeus Bank, Saudi Awwal Bank, Saudi National Bank, Société Générale, Standard Chartered Bank Limited, and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank.
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