Saudi Arabia Launches Call For NREP Round 6 With 4.5 GW Capacity

The Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) has opened the tender for 4.5 GW of new renewable energy capacity, comprising both solar PV and wind energy technologies, under Saudi Arabia’s National Renewable Energy Program (NREP) round 6.  

A solar-heavy pre-qualification round, this one seeks to procure power from 3 GW PV capacity distributed as 4 projects, all under independent power producer (IPP) mode. These include the 1.4 GW Najran Solar PV IPP, the 400 MW Sufun Solar PV IPP, the 600 MW Samtah Solar PV IPP and the 600 MW Darb Solar PV IPP.  

For wind energy, the call is for the 1.5 GW Dawadmi Wind IPP Project. The projects need to be completed on a build-own-operate (BOO) basis. 

SPPC announced the round 6 call on September 24, 2024. The last date to submit pre-qualification documents is October 15, 2024.  

Led by the Ministry of Energy, Saudi Arabia aims to achieve an optimal energy mix and supply 50% of electricity from renewable energy by 2030 under the NREP. In February 2024, the SPPC released the list of shortlisted companies for 3.7 GW of solar PV capacity under NREP round 5 (see 23 Bidders Shortlisted For Saudi Arabia’s NREP Round 5). 

The ministry is also looking for more suitable locations for utility-scale solar and wind energy projects as it targets to tender 20 GW capacity annually (see Saudi Arabia Scouting For RE Project Locations).   

Clean energy is big on Saudi Arabia’s future growth strategy as it diversifies the economy to non-oil sectors. In a recent report on the country, Goldman Sachs said the Middle Eastern nation plans to allocate $235 billion in funding for clean energy till 2030 under which its solar PV installation target is 100 GW to 130 GW (see Saudi Arabia Expected To Invest $235 Billion CapEx In Clean Energy By 2030).