Moody’s Upgrades Saudi Electricity Company Ratings To A1
Moody’s Investors Service, the bond credit rating business of Moody’s Corporation, has recently upgraded the ratings of Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) to A1 from A2.The main reason is due to increased government support to the company. The upgrade to A1 highlights Moody’s revised assumption of government support to Very High from High and the action is underpinned by a proposed new regulatory framework set to be implemented on 01-01-2021. The new framework will offer a more transparent and predictable compensation mechanism for SEC than is currently the case and will lead to more stable and predictable cash flows for most of the company’s operations. The framework will allow SEC to recover its operational costs and earn a fair rate of return of 6.0% on its investments under a regulated asset base model with control periods of three years. However, Moody’s recognizes the need for an operating track record under the new regulatory framework, especially when it comes to the timeliness of payments, the rating agency stated.
MENA’s RE Investment To Reach $97 BLN In 5 years
Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp) announced on Wednesday that over the next five years $97 billion of the $237 billion investment will be in the renewables sector of the Middle East North Africa region. It also recently announced that it has signed a $50 million revolving construction facility with the Yellow Door Energy, an UAE-based sustainable energy provider to develop solar-PV plants in the region. Apicorp said in a statement that, The first utilisation of the financing will be for solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in Jordan, where Yellow Door Energy is currently operating and building 79MW of solar PV projects across the country — the largest such portfolio of any company operating there.
Agility Announces New Solar Projects In Dubai And Jordan; Aim To Reduce Carbon Footprint by 5%
Agility, a leading global logistics provider based in kuwait announced solar projects in Dubai and Jordan that will eventually cut the company’s carbon footprint in the region by 5%. At Agility’s regional headquarters in Dubai, the solar photovoltaic (PV) plant involves installation of 17,500 panels at three sites with the capacity to generate nearly 8 megawatts of power at peak. Installation will include a 5.45 MW system at two sites in the Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA), and a 2.6 MW system at the Dubai Investment Park. Once complete, Agility’s solar PV system will generate enough electricity to cover 60% of the energy requirements at the sites and save an estimated 8,838 tons of CO2 each year, roughly equivalent to the emissions generated by trucking 18,000 fully-loaded containers from Dubai to Abu Dhabi. In Jordan, the solar photovoltaic plant will encompass 1,945 panels at Agility’s warehouse in Aqaba, with a capacity of 788 kilo-watt peak. The solar plant will generate enough electricity to cover 100% of the energy requirements and save an estimated 900 tons of CO2 each year.
Mohammed Bin Rashid Inaugurates 3rd Phase Of DEWA’s Solar Park
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, has recently inaugurated Dubai Electricity and Water Authority’s, DEWA’s, Innovation Centre and the 800MW third phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park which is the largest single-site solar park in the world. With a planned total capacity of 5,000MW by 2030, the Park features an investment of AED50 billion. PM also visited the site of the 950MW fourth phase of the solar park, the world’s largest Concentrated Solar Power, CSP, project, being developed at an investment of AED15.78 billion using the Independent Power Producer, IPP, model. The fourth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which is also the world’s largest single-site investment project, combines CSP with photovoltaic solar panels. The project features the world’s tallest solar power tower that will be 262.44 metres high.Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum was welcomed by Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA.
New Utilities Contract Set To Power Red Sea Project With 100% Renewable Energy
The Red Sea Development Company secures multinational investment in its first public-private partnership for utilities package focused exclusively on environmentally responsible renewable energy, water production, wastewater treatment and district cooling. The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC), the developer behind the world’s most ambitious regenerative tourism project, has awarded its highest-value contract to date to a consortium led by ACWA Power to design, build, operate and transfer The Red Sea Project’s utilities infrastructure. The contract marks a significant step forward for The Red Sea Project, establishing it as the region’s first tourism destination powered solely by renewable energy. A tourism project of this size, powered solely by renewable energy, has never been achieved on this scale anywhere in the world.
Oman’s PDO Completes Solar Car-Park Project In Muscat
A solar car park project launched by Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) at Mina al Fahal in Muscat has been completed. According to Oman Daily Observer, A PDO official commented that this will pave the way for ‘green energy’ and power the head office and surplus electricity will be fed back into the local grid. Speaking on the sidelines of the Environmental Forum 2020, held recently under the auspices of Dr Khalfan bin Said al Shueili, Minister of Housing and Urban Planning, PDO’s Executive Director of External Affairs and Value Addition, Engineer Abdulamir bin Abdul Hussein al Ajmi, said the company has installed sufficient numbers of solar panels atop car parks at its Mina Al Fahal complex. Al Ajmi stated that “We have completed the project that generates power from the parking lots in the Mina al Fahal area and we have succeeded in installing thousands of photovoltaic panels whose production capacity exceeds 10 megawatts (MW) at peak output,”. The electricity output will meet a large part of the demand at Mina Al Fahal while any surplus will be channeled into the grid, he added
