Saudi Arabia’s utility developer ACWA Power said Saudi Aramco Power Co. (SAPCO), a fully owned subsidiary of Aramco, has joined the consortium to develop Sudair Solar plant, a key project under the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund Public Investment Fund’s (PIF) renewable energy program.

ACWA Power, which builds power and desalinated water plants, also announced the financial close for the 3.4 billion riyals ($906 million) solar plant.

SAPCO joins the consortium alongside ACWA Power and Badeel and will hold a 30 percent stake in the special purpose vehicle, Sudair One Renewable Energy Company, which was incorporated for the project.

ACWA Power and Badeel will each own 35 percent, the utility company said in a statement on Sunday.

ACWA Power is 50 percent owned by PIF while Badeel is fully owned by PIF.

According to the data from Refinitiv’s Infrastructure 360, the total project finance stands at $616.60 million.

This is Aramco’s first participation with PIF in its renewable energy program; “reflecting the company’s efforts to advancing sustainable energy solutions within its operations and Saudi Arabia, where a variety of low-carbon energy solutions are being deployed,” the statement said.

The 1500-megawatt (MW) Sudair Solar PV project is the first project under PIF’s renewable energy program, which aims to support the oil rich Kingdom’s ongoing energy transition and diversification. The target is to ultimately deliver 70 percent of the country’s renewable energy under the National Renewable Energy Program (NREP).

The Sudair project is set to become one of the largest single-contracted solar photovoltaic (PV plants) in the world and the largest of its kind in Saudi Arabia. A 25-year power purchase agreement for the plant was signed with the Saudi Power Procurement Company, with the tariff being among the lowest for solar PV projects globally.

(Writing by Brinda Darasha; editing by Seban Scaria)

brinda.darasha@refinitiv.com

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