Saudi-based Acwa Power, a major developer, investor and operator of a portfolio of power generation and desalinated water production plants, achieved a financial close for its 61.3 MWp solar independent power project (IPP) located in the Risha area of Jordan.

This follows the execution of the recent agreements with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) resulting in senior loans worth $22 million and Deutsche Investitions-Und Entwicklungsgesellschaft Mbh (DEG) and Arab Bank which each gave $16 million funding to Risha.

The power purchase agreement (PPA) and the transmission connection agreement (TCA) for the project were signed with Nepco while the government guarantee agreement (GGA) was signed with the Ministry of Finance, simultaneously in March this year.

The project, developed by Acwa Power and procured by Nepco on a bilateral basis, will deliver the lowest tariff (0.042 JD/kWh equal to ca. 5.92 USD cents/kWh) across all renewable energy projects in Jordan including the Round I and II of the Photovoltaic Procurement program of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

The agreement for the project was signed by Dr Ibrahim Saif, minister of Energy & Mineral Resources for Jordan and Mohammad Abunayyan, the chairman of Acwa Power in Jabnuary this year.

The plant is to be connected at the site with a modified substation, which is already connecting the existing Cegco plant, resulting in a tariff that is over 3 per cent lower than the previous lowest tariff provided to Jordan with the Mafraq photovoltaic (PV) IPP project, which was also developed by Acwa Power.

The 61.3 MWp plant located in Mafraq Governorate, about 300 km north-east of capital Amman, has the capacity to power 12,000 households every year. This project will also result in 1.5 million Tons of CO2 saved over 20 years, equivalent to 79,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year.

Thamer Al Sharhan, the managing director of Acwa Power and chairman of Cegco, said: "This is an important milestone for the project. Having closed the financing, we are now looking forward to successfully building the plant and commencing in the commercial operations by Q3-2019."

"Our goal is to reliably deliver clean energy at the lowest ever tariffs for Jordan," he stated.

Rajit Nanda, the chief investment officer of Acwa Power, said: "The Risha PV IPP project adds up to our presence as one of Jordan’s largest power generators (through Cegco, Acwa Power Zarqa and Mafraq PV IPP), and is yet another demonstration of our commitment to the country."

"We are also proud to be associated with EBRD, and Arab Bank in Jordan, building up on continuing relationships, as they support the development of the renewable energy in the Mena region; DEG and Acwa Power have come together for the first time but we are confident that this relationship will go from strength to strength," observed Nanda.

"The partnership with EBRD, DEG and Arab Bank for funding this project has been a critical component in helping us support Nepco by providing record low tariffs for Renewable energy in Jordan,' he added.-TradeArabia News Service