Saudi Arabia has launched a solar power tender of 300 MW capacity. This is the first tender floated by the country's newly appointed Renewable Energy Project Development Office (REPDO) of the Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources (MEIM).
As announced earlier this month, the agency was to issue a request for qualification (RFQ) documents for 700 MW by February 20, 2017 (see Saudi Arabia To Launch 700 MW Tender). So far the ministry is on track. Along with this 300 MW PV tender, it has also launched a 400 MW wind power tender.
For the 300 MW PV tender, both individual companies as well as consortiums are eligible to participate. The project titled R1 Sakaka PV RFQ is part of the Round 1 of the National Renewable Energy Program being launched by the MEIM. To be developed on a 'build, own and operate (BOO)' basis under one special purpose company, the project will be owned 100% by the successful bidder.
Funding for the project will be managed by the successful bidder. This financing ought to be raised through limited or non-recourse debt facilities. No government entity will invest in the project in any form.
The successful bidder will undertake development, design, permitting, financing, EPC and commissioning among other tasks. This 300 MW plant will be a greenfield solar PV plant near the city of Sakaka.
The deadline for expressing interest is March 17, 2017. Applications can be submitted latest by March 20, 2017.
The RFQ documents can be viewed and downloaded from the official website .
Despite the solar tender, according to the Riyadh-based King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE), hydrocarbons will remain the major part in the energy mix in 2032, a capacity of around 60 GW. Nuclear energy is planned to have 17.6GW, solar is supposed to reach 41 GW, of which 16 GW will come from PV, 25GW from concentrated solar power, 9 GW from wind, 3 GW from waste-to-energy and 1 GW from geothermal power.
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