The Saudi Power Procurement Co. signed two power purchase agreements with a consortium led by Japan’s Marubeni Corporation on Tuesday in Tokyo.
The deals are part of the fourth phase of Saudi Arabia’s National Renewable Energy Program, supervised by the Ministry of Energy.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, Saudi Minister of Energy and Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry SAITO Ken were present at the signing.
The agreements pertain to the Al-Ghat wind power project, with a capacity of 600 MW, and the Waad Al-Shamal wind power project, with a capacity of 500 MW. These agreements were signed during the Saudi-Japan Vision 2030 Business Forum, held in Japan on Tuesday.
On this occasion, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, Saudi Minister of Energy, expressed his gratitude to King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Chairman of the Supreme Committee for Energy, for the support, assistance and follow-up provided by the leadership, which aids the Ministry of Energy and its system in achieving the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 in the energy sector.
Prince Abdulaziz stated: “I am pleased to announce that the Al-Ghat project has set a new world record for the lowest cost of electricity production from wind energy, with a cost of 1.56558 US cents per kilowatt-hour, equivalent to 5.87094 halalas per kilowatt-hour. The Waad Al-Shamal project achieved the second-best global record in this field, with a cost of 1.70187 US cents per kilowatt-hour, equivalent to 6.38201 halalas per kilowatt-hour.”
The minister added: “The annual energy produced by both projects will be sufficient for the consumption of 257,000 residential units, demonstrating the significant success of these projects in enhancing energy efficiency in the Kingdom.”
He noted that these projects are part of the objectives of the National Renewable Energy Program, which aims to utilize renewable energy sources available throughout the Kingdom to contribute to displacing liquid fuels used in the electricity production sector and achieving the optimal energy mix for electricity generation, with renewable energy sources expected to account for about 50% of the mix by 2030.