Amea Power locks in funding for 1 GW renewables projects in Egypt: The UAE’s Al Nowais subsidiary Amea Power secured USD 1.1 bn in debt and equity funding for a 560 MW solar plant and 505 MW wind farm in Egypt, according to statements from Egypt’s cabinet and the IFC (pdf). Construction of the facilities is due to begin in December and will be delivered under a build-own-operate (BOO) framework, according to the IFC statement.

The breakdown: The World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), Dutch development bank FMO and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are collectively providing USD 500 mn for the solar plant. Meanwhile, the USD 800 mn wind farm is receiving USD 500 mn from the Japanese Bank for International Cooperation, the IFC, and three commercial banks — Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, and Standard Chartered Bank — covered in ins. by Nippon Export Investment Ins., according to a statement from the IFC, which was the lead arranger for the funding package. The IFC also managed to mobilize a working capital facility from CIB, the statement said, without disclosing the exact amount the bank is lending.

More about the projects: The Abydos solar plant and Amunet wind project will generate over 4k GWh a year of power, according to the IFC statement. Power from Abydos will be priced at USD 0.02/KWh, while power from Amunet will be priced at USD 0.03/KWh — “among the least expensive rates globally,” it adds. Construction of the Abydos solar plant near Kom Ombo should be finished within 18 months, and the Amunet wind farm in the Gulf of Suez within 30 months.

We caught wind of the Amunet project earlier this month, when the IFC indicated it could provide USD 83 mn in partial funding. Total cost was estimated at USD 709 mn, with the electricity produced to be sold to state-owned Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company under a 25-year power purchase agreement.

Amea seems set on continuing its growth spurt: Amea put pen to paper during COP27 for a 390k ton per annum green ammonia plant in Egypt’s Ain Sokhna that could be up and running by the end of 2025. It’s adding 20 MW of capacity to its solar project in Togo to reach 70 MW. Its portfolio also includes a USD 100 mn 100 MW solar plant in Tunisia and a 100 MW wind project in Morocco. The company has some 6 GW of renewables projects in 15 countries in the pipeline, according to its website.