Tadawul-listed Acwa Power is continuing its Asian expansion with a 1 GW solar project in Bangladesh, signing a non-binding MoU with the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) to develop the plant, the Financial Express reports. Acwa has not made public any financial details or a timeline.

What we know: Acwa Power will bring the technical know-how and line up funding for the project. BPDB will provide administrative support alongside the state-owned Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority.

Acwa Power is aggressively expanding its portfolio: The energy giant expanded its portfolio to 58 GW from 1 GW in under a decade, the Financial Times reports. Recently, the Saudi developer has been investing heavily in a southeast Asian expansion with projects in Indonesia and Thailand, as well as eyeing a 10 GW wind project in Egypt and investing in renewables in Morocco.

And it’s not the only one with ambitions in Asia: Saudi Aramco signed an agreement with Jakarta-headquartered oil company Pertamina to individually conduct feasibility studies on the creation of a hydrogen and ammonia value chain in Indonesia. Emirati renewable energy company Masdar will build a 500 MW wind farm — Central Asia’s largest — in Uzbekistan, with commercial operations expected to start by 4Q 2024.

UAE IS ALSO MAKING MOVES in Bangladesh- UAE State Minister Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh met with Bangladesh’s Premier Sheikh Hasina Wazed in Dhaka last week to discuss cooperation on clean energy and food security, WAM reports.

IN OTHER SOLAR NEWS- Egypt is moving forward on one tender… Egypt’s New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) will launch a tender before the end of the year for 200 MW solar projects in Aswan, Amwal Al Ghad reports. The farms will be near the Benban solar park, the newspaper reports. Egypt’s Electricity Ministry is aiming to award the projects to one company able to implement the entire 200 MW generation capacity. NREA is looking to complete the bid submission process and reach financial close on the project in 2023.

…And putting another on ice: NREA has indefinitely postponed a EGP 1.9 bn tender for a 50 MW solar plant, Al Mal reports, citing unnamed sources from Egypt’s Electricity Ministry. The sources cited the country’s recent currency devaluation for not moving ahead on the Kom Ombo solar plant in Aswan, saying the devaluation has affected the cost of implementing the project. The NREA may renew the tender at a future date when USD rates stabilize, the sources said. The ministry had announced plans to tender six solar projects in Aswan to local and international private sector firms this quarter.

REFRESHER- The Central Bank of Egypt adopted a durably flexible FX rate regime last month, as we reported previously. The EGP has since lost c.24% of its value against the greenback, according to market data. The devaluation has further driven up the cost of solar panels, which have been on the rise due to supply chain woes since the beginning of this year, as detailed in a July report by Attaqa.