KSA’s Acwa Power inks agreements with Italian investors: Renewables giant Acwa Power signed agreements with six Italian partners to explore potential partnerships in key sectors including green hydrogen, water desalination, waste management, according to a statement.

Who is doing what: Italy’s SME federation Confindustria — with a collective network of 222 associations and more than 150k companies — will assess the potential for green hydrogen and water desalination projects, including the identification of suitable contractors and suppliers, the statement notes. Oil giant Eni will explore prospects for partnerships in green hydrogen, renewables, and R&D in sustainable technologies. Waste management firm A2A will look into green hydrogen projects for export, while engineering firm Rina will investigate hydrogen’s potential use for sea-borne shipping. Industrial solutions provider Industrie De Nora will provide its expertise in electrochemistry and sustainability technologies to advance the operation and maintenance of Acwa Power’s water desalination and green hydrogen projects. Specialty additives manufacturer Italmatch Chemicals will explore the potential for water treatment projects and R&D in Saudi Arabia.

What they said: “We look forward to bringing together Saudi Arabia, home of one of the largest decarbonization programs in the world, with a rapidly expanding and diversifying economy, and Italy, one of the most competitive engineering, manufacturing and technology suppliers globally. The collaboration between Acwa Power and our Italian counterparties will enable the exchange of crucial expertise, products, and equipment,” CEO Marco Arcelli said in the statement.

IN OTHER ACWA NEWS- China in the crosshairs: Acwa plans to kick off operations in China from next year as it expands its presence in renewables-driven countries, Al Arabiya reports, citing comments made by Arcelli. “The push into China and other Asian markets will focus on developing desalination, green hydrogen, and renewable energy projects,” Arcelli said, adding that the company is also looking into partnerships with European countries to set up shop in the kingdom.

Acwa Power is aggressively expanding elsewhere in Asia: The company has been investing heavily in a southeast Asian expansion with projects in Indonesia and Thailand. Acwa Power signed an agreement with Bangladesh’s government last week to build the country’s largest solar project. The company signed a power purchase and investment agreements with Uzbekistan for a 1.5 GW, USD 2.4 bn wind energy farm in 2019. Acwa is also developing a 240 MW wind farm in Azerbaijan with a reported investment of USD 300 mn. In March, Acwa signed an agreement with Kazakhstan to build and manage a 1 GW wind farm and a battery energy storage facility. That same month, the company signed a USD 2.5 bn power purchase and investment agreement with Uzbekistan to develop two solar stations and three storage facilities.