The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has announced a partnership with AMEA Power and Kyuden International Corporation of Japan to develop a large-scale solar and battery energy storage system (BESS) project in Egypt. The collaboration will support the construction of the Abydos II project through the project company Abydos For Renewable Energy. The project will be located in Aswan Governorate in southern Egypt and aims to strengthen access to reliable electricity and improve energy security.
The Abydos II project will consist of a 1,000 MW solar plant integrated with a 600 MWh BESS. The project is expected to generate over 3 million MWh of electricity annually, with stored energy dispatched during night-time peak demand. Moreover, it is projected to lower carbon emissions by nearly 1.6 million tonnes each year and contribute to Egypt’s targets of reducing power sector emissions by 37 per cent and achieving 42 per cent renewable energy usage by 2030.
IFC has arranged a debt financing package of $571.8 million for the project. This includes a senior loan of $83.5 million and $465.2 million mobilised from international partners, namely Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank, Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft, British International Investment, the OPEC Fund for International Development, and Europe Arab Bank. Additionally, concessional blended finance has been provided, with a $20 million senior loan from the Clean Technology Fund and a $3.1 million senior loan from the MENA Private Sector Development Program supported by the Government of the Netherlands, for which IFC is the implementing entity.
