The new and renewable energy sectors are promising for local and foreign investors and will benefit the consumer especially in terms of price levels, said TAQA Arabia’s Executive Chairman Khaled Abu Bakr.
The Egyptian government has diversified its strategy for energy sources during the current fiscal year by issuing a new tariff law on new and renewable energy. This comes in addition to reducing fuel allocations in the current budget to about EGP 100bn, according to Executive Chairman of TAQA Arabia.
According to Abu Bakr, the company’s investments in Egypt so far are EGP 2.5bn. He added that his company has signed an agreement with the Ministry of Electricity to set up a solar energy power plant in Kom Ombo. The plant’s investment cost is EGP 570m, and its capacity is 50 MW.
“There are future alliances with two companies, one of which is with the Greek company TERNA, to set up a plant with electrical capacity of 100 MW,” Abu Bakr said. “The other alliance is with the American company Solar Reserve to set up a plant with electrical capacity of 50 MW.”
He added that with the government’s direction to provide large incentives for investment in new and renewable energy, the sector’s expected growth will not be limited to investments but will extend to the provision of new job opportunities. He added that the number of employees at TAQA Arabia currently stands at 3,400 employees.
TAQA Arabia works in cooperation with the Ministry of Petroleum in a number of governorates in Upper Egypt to convert 350,000 clients from using hazardous LPG cylinders to safer natural gas, Abu Bakr said.
“The state is working on supporting companies operating in the new and renewable energy through the issuance of new tariff laws that have been issued over the past year,” said Professor Mohamed Salah ElSobki, Executive Chairman of the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA).
ElSobki believes that the banking system does not mind financing these projects under the state support.
