A consortium led by Saudi utilities giant ACWA Power is to invest $8.3bn to build 15 gigawatts of solar and wind farms in the kingdom as it accelerates its push into renewables.
ACWA Power, owned by the country’s sovereign wealth fund, is joined by Aramco Power, part of Saudi Aramco, in the consortium that has signed power purchase agreements with the state-owned electricity buyer to build five solar and two wind projects in four regions across the kingdom.
The deals mark a significant step forward in the country’s ambition to generate half of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030 as part of a plan launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to diversify the Saudi economy away from its dependence on oil revenues. The world’s biggest oil exporter also wants to cut its carbon dioxide emissions to net zero by 2060.