Renewables developer Masdar plans to build a 10GW wind farm in Egypt that will be among the world’s largest, under a deal agreed on the sidelines of COP27.
UAE-based Masdar said the onshore wind project – the largest yet planned in its global portfolio – will form part of a ‘Green Corridor’ initiative aiming by 2035 to secure a future renewables and grid infrastructure for Egypt, which is currently hosting the climate summit.
The deal was agreed in a signing by officials from Masdar and the Egyptian government, and witnessed by Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and his UAE counterpart Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan .
UAE industry minister Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber said: “The scale of this mega 10GW onshore wind project is a testament to the renewable energy ambitions of the UAE and the Republic of Egypt.”
No detailed timescale or cost for the giant project was given in a statement announcing the deal.
The Green Corridor plans is designed to help Egypt hit its goal to have a 42% renewables share by 2035.
The nation currently relies heavily on oil and gas, and Masdar claims the 10GW wind project will produce almost 48,000GWh annually and replace $5bn worth of gas.
Egypt boasts regions with excellent wind resources and is the target of some of the world’s most ambitious renewables and green hydrogen plans.
Masdar has already signed a memorandum of understanding over construction of a potential 4GW of green hydrogen production plants in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and on the Mediterranean coast,
Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest in September unveiled plans for his company Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) to build a 9.2GW renewables project to produce green hydrogen and ammonia in the nation.
Egypt had 1.7GW of wind power in place by the end of 2021, according to the Global Wind Energy Council.
