<\/p>\n
The first phase of the Dandara Project will combine a 500MW solar photovoltaic plant with a 100MWh battery energy storage system in Qena Governorate, southern Egypt.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The AfDB will provide $46 million from ordinary resources and $20 million in concessional funding from the Climate Investment Funds\u2019 Clean Technology Fund.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Another $151 million in debt financing will be mobilised from a consortium of development finance institutions.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The financing will support the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the solar plant and integrated battery system.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Project is expected to become fully operational in early 2028 and generate an estimated 1 373GWh of clean electricity annually.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Aluminium Company of Egypt, one of Africa\u2019s largest aluminium producers, will purchase all electricity generated under a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company will transmit electricity from the solar facility to the aluminium plant.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Battery storage will supply renewable electricity during peak evening demand and help manage fluctuations in solar generation. \u201cBy integrating large-scale solar power and battery storage into one of Egypt\u2019s most energy-intensive industries, this investment demonstrates how renewable energy can strengthen industrial competitiveness and reduce carbon emissions,\u201d AfDB Vice-President for Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth Dr Kevin Kariuki said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Kariuki said the Project could also help African manufacturers respond to changing international market requirements, including the European Union\u2019s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The facility is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 500 000 tonnes annually.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
About 2 500 jobs will be created during construction, followed by 23 permanent positions during operation. Employment initiatives will focus particularly on women and young people.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–AfDB\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":41080,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[44],"class_list":["post-49866","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-finance","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and Dandara Solar Power have signed a $66 million financing agreement for a solar and battery project supporting Egypt\u2019s aluminium industry.","published_date":"","news_description":"The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and Dandara Solar Power have signed a $66 million financing agreement for a solar and battery project supporting Egypt\u2019s aluminium industry.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/49866","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/49866\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49903,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/49866\/revisions\/49903"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41080"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49866"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=49866"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}