The consortium led by EDF Group and Masdar, alongside their partners Korea East-West Power Co. (EWP) and SUEZ, announced on Thursday that it has reached the financial close for the multi-utilities infrastructure project at the Amaala luxury tourism destination in Saudi Arabia.

The overall project build cost is approximately $1.5 billion, consortium co-leader Masdar said in a press statement. The lenders were First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), Emirates NBD, Riyad Bank, Saudi National Bank (SNB), and Alinma Bank.

The EDF-Masdar consortium had signed a 25-year concession agreement for the multi-utility project with Amaala's owner Red Sea Global in September 2023.

According to the press statement, the facility consists of an off-grid renewable energy system, which will generate electricity from a 250 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic plant, 700MWh battery energy storage, transmission and distribution lines, a 37 million litres per day (MLD) capacity desalination plant as well as wastewater treatment plants. 

The first phase of Amaala is set to welcome its first guests in 2025. Upon completion, the destination will feature over 4,000 hotel rooms across 30 hotels, and 1,200 residential villas, apartments, and estate homes, and host more than 15,000 residents and workers.

(Editing by Anoop Menon) (anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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