The consortium building the worlds largest single site solar power project in Abu Dhabi has signed a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) for the electricity the plant will produce.
Chinas JinkoSolar and Marubeni Corporation of Japan are developing the 1,177 MW (DC) solar photovoltaic (PV) project at Sweihan, 120km east of Abu Dhabi in partnership with Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA).
Under the PPA, all power generated will be sold to ADWEC, a wholly owned entity of the ADWEA. The plant will produce enough electricity to power around 200,000 homes when it is commissioned in two years time.
Financial agreements are expected to close in April 2017 with commercial operation expected to begin in 2019, JinkoSolar said in a statement.
“Today’s important milestone is a highly significant event for both the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and also for the global Solar PV market,” said H.E Abdullah Ali Musleh Al Ahbabi, Chairman of ADWEA.
“Not only will the project, once constructed, be the world’s largest single utility scale solar PV plant, but the price of net electrical energy that we have agreed to today is one of the most competitive prices seen to date in the Solar PV industry.”
JinkoSolar and Marubeni will each hold a 20 percent stake in the consortium that will build, operate and maintain the power plant while ADWEA will own the remaining 60 percent.