Fahad bin Hamad Al Mohannadi (centre), Nebras Power’s Chairman, with other officials at the event.
DOHA: Nebras Power, a subsidiary of Qatar Electricity and Water Company (QEWC) has announced that its consortium has completed the construction of the Shams Ma’an Solar power project in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The project was commissioned ahead of the schedule. The generated electricity will be sold to the National Electric Power Company (NEPCO) in Jordan under a 20 years power purchase agreement (PPA) signed between the Project Company and NEPCO.
The official launch of the power plant took place under King Abdullah II Bin Al Hussein – King of Jordan and the presence of the Dr. Hani Al-Mulki - Prime Minister and a number of ministers, senior officials and notables of Ma’ancity, QEWC said in a regulatory filing to Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) yesterday.
Shams Ma’an solar power plant has been constructed in Ma’an city, about 220km southwest of the Jordanian capital Amman. It is the largest Photovoltaic solar power plant in the Middle East in commercial operation. Plant capacity is 52.5MW, and at the moment generates more than 30% of the electricity generated using solar energy in Jordan. This percentage will reach about 16 percent of the total electricity generated using solar energy after the completion of the second phase of solar projects under construction in Jordan.
Speaking on the occasion, Fahad bin Hamad Al Mohannadi – Nebras Power’s Chairman said: “The potential that renewable energy provides, qualifies it to be one of the basic components of the energy mix in countries that have scares quantities of conventional fuels. While projections indicate that demand for energy will rapidly increase in the coming years, we are confident that renewable energy which environmental friendly will play an important role in satisfying this demand, particularly in countries having rapid growth in energy demand”.
Khalid Jolo – Chief executive Officer of Nebras Power said: “We are pleased to inaugurate this project, which is an expansion of our strong partnership with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, and a boost of Nebras Power investments here. Nebras Power is proceeding with its commitment to expand its investments in a planned manner with a commitment to remain within the core business of the company. This step comes in line with the long-term strategy to enforce and expand Nebras Power’s international presence by developing a balanced portfolio which includes assets working with different types of fuel including environmental friendly projects”.
Jolo added, “The importance of the inauguration of this plant is not only in supplying the electrical power to the Jordanian grid, but also emphasizing the key role that renewable energy can take, especially solar, in the development of the country”.
Faisal Al-Siddiqi - Director of Business Development Department said: “The completion of the construction of Shams Ma’an solar power plant underlines the determination of the Kingdom of Jordan to reduce its dependence on conventional fuels, and its orientation to the use of renewable energy, and to move toward low-carbon emission development, and we are in Nebras Power proud to be part of this strategy by Jordan”.
