Egypt's Kom Ombo solar plant signs US$ 114 million financing package

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development(link is external) (EBRD), the OPEC Fund for International Development(link is external) (the OPEC Fund), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Green Climate Fund(link is external) (GCF) and Arab Bank today signed a US$ 114 million financing package with ACWA Power for the construction of the largest private solar plant in Egypt.

The development of the Kom Ombo solar plant will add 200 MW of energy capacity, increasing the share of renewable energy in Egypt's energy mix and further promoting private-sector participation in the Egyptian power sector.

The package comprises loans of up to US$ 36 million from the EBRD, US$ 18 million from the OPEC Fund, US$ 17.8 million from the AfDB, US$ 23.8 million from the GCF and US$ 18 million from the Arab Bank. This is in addition to equity bridge loans of up to US$ 14 million from EBRD and US$ 33.5 million from Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP).

The new Kom Ombo plant will be located less than 20 km from Africa's biggest solar park, the 1.8 GW Benban complex. Once operational, the new utility-scale plant will serve 130,000 households.