A consortium of Bahraini, Chinese, Egyptian and Emirati companies has announced plans to establish a large-scale renewable energy manufacturing facility in Egypt. The project, named the ‘Atom Solar Project’, will have an annual production capacity of 2GW of solar cells, 2GW of solar modules, and 1GWh of battery energy storage systems (BESS).
The agreement was formalised on Wednesday during a land usufruct contract signing ceremony, attended by Egyptian Prime Minister Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, in New Alamein City’s Sokhna Industrial Zone in north-eastern Egypt.
The project partners include Bahraini investor Infinity Capital, Chinese manufacturer JA Solar, Egyptian group AH Industrial Management, and UAE-based investor Global South Utilities (GSU). The consortium will invest US$220 million into the facility, with construction and trial operations expected to take around three years.
According to the Egyptian government, the factory’s solar cells will be exported to international markets, aligning with global efforts to diversify supply chains and reduce dependence on Chinese production. As of 2023, China accounted for 98% of global solar wafer production and 92% of solar cell production, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The factory’s solar modules, however, will primarily serve domestic demand and regional markets in the Middle East and Africa.
Project partner JA Solar has a track record in the Egyptian market, previously supplying modules to the 500MW Abydos Solar project, developed by AMEA Power. That site marked a milestone for Egypt as it integrated the country’s first large-scale BESS, with 300MWh of equipment supplied by Trina Storage.
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