Scatec Solar Commissions 390 MW Benban Project in Egypt

Scatec Solar has grid-connected the last of the six 65 MW solar power plants in Egypt, marking the completion of the 390 MW Benban solar project in Egypt.

Scatec Solar and partners have grid-connected the last of the six 65 MW solar power plants in Egypt. This marks the completion of the 390 MW Benban solar project located near Aswan in Upper Egypt. The project is part of the 1.8 GW Benban solar park, one of the world’s biggest solar parks where Scatec Solar is the largest developer.

“We have been a pioneer in Egypt since 2013 and been supporting the country’s efforts to increase generation capacity and increase the share of renewables in its energy mix. I’m very proud that we have completed our largest project ever. Constructing a total of six solar plants in just over 16 months is a major achievement for everyone involved”, said Raymond Carlsen, CEO of Scatec Solar.

In April 2017, Scatec Solar and partners KLP Norfund and Africa 50 signed a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Government of Egypt for delivery of electricity from six solar plants, totaling 390 MW.

The project was both the company’s first, as well as the world’s largest solar plant to utilise bi-facial solar modules, capturing the sun from both sides of the panel to increase the clean energy generation. 

The estimated annual electricity production is 870 GWh, enough to provide energy for more than 420,000 households in Egypt. The solar plants will also contribute to avoiding about 350,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year.

In July, the firm announced that it has grid-connected its third solar power plant in Malaysia, the 66 MW (DC) Merchang plant.

In September, the firm and partner Rengy Development have grid-connected and reached commercial operation for the 47 MW Rengy solar project in the south of Ukraine. The project is realised under the country’s fixed Feed-in-Tariff scheme until 2030 and is expected to produce about 56 GWh per year.

More recently, the company has launched a new service that will offer industrial players in emerging markets access to flexible, reliable and low-cost power through solar plant leasing. The new service, called Release- by Scatec Solar, offers companies flexible leasing agreements of pre-assembled solar and battery equipment, from 1 to 20 MW capacity.