DF, which has spearheaded the €400bn ($521m) Desertec development since 2009, said “many irresolvable disputes between the two entities in the area of future strategies, obligations and their communication, and last but not least the managerial style of Dii’s top management” led to its decision.

A statement said: “Desertec Foundation also wants to avoid being dragged into the maelstrom of negative publicity about the management crisis and disorientation of the industrial consortium.

“The