• EDF Renewables and its partner KOWEPO have finalized the financing of the 500 MW Manah 1 solar project. 
• The power purchase agreement (PPA) was signed on March 23, 2023.
• Commissioning of the plant is planned for the first quarter of 2025.

Muscat, January 9, 2024 – EDF Renewables and its partner Korea Western Power Corporation (KOWEPO) announce that they have completed the financing of the Manah 1 project, a 500 MW solar power plant located in the Sultanate of Oman.

After responding to a call for tenders in September 2022, the consortium won the project and signed the power purchase agreement (PPA) on March 23, 2023 with the Omani water and electricity supply company ( Oman Power and Water Company). The consortium will develop, finance, build and operate the solar power plant which will be located in the governorate of Al Dakhiliyah, 175 km south of Muscat. Commissioning of the plant is planned for the first quarter of 2025. 

The Manah 1 project is the first EDF Renewables and KOWEPO project in Oman. It will contribute to the region's carbon neutrality objective and to reaching 35 to 39% of renewable energies in the energy mix by 2040.

The financing of the project was possible thanks to the support of international financial institutions and the strategic partnership formed by the two major French and Korean energy players to combine their expertise.

The partners signed the financing agreements during an official ceremony organized during COP 28, a crucial step before the final closing of the financing on December 25, 2023. Present during the ceremony was Bruno Bensasson, Executive Director of the Group EDF in charge of the Renewable Energy Sector and Chairman and CEO of EDF Renewables; Park Hyung-Deok, Chairman of Western Power Co.; Yoon Hee-Sung, President of the Export-Import Bank of Korea; Yang Ki-Mo, KOTRA Bank Regional Headquarters Director for the Middle East and North Africa; Aymen Koubaa, Regional Head, Energy and Infrastructure Project Finance at Société Générale Bank in the Middle East DIFC; Muhammad Al Habsi, Director of Oman's Muscat Bank office in the United Arab Emirates; Eng. Yahya Al Rawahi, Managing Director of Wadi Noor Solar Power Company SAOC and other distinguished guests.

Funding for the project will be provided through equity investments and loans from local and international financial institutions, such as the Export-Import Bank of Korea, European bank Société Générale and Oman Bank Muscat.

Olivier Bordes, Managing Director of EDF Renewables in the Middle East, said: “We would like to thank the authorities of the Sultanate of Oman, and in particular APSR, Nama Holding and PWP, for the trust placed in the consortium to carry out this 500 MW Manah 1 solar power plant project. Today, we close the financing of the project, highlighting the continued support of EDF Renewables and its partner KOWEPO for the Sultanate of Oman's objective of reaching 35 to 39% of renewable energy in its energy mix by 2040. This project, the first for the consortium in the country, is in line with the EDF group's support for the objective of tripling net installed renewable energy capacities in the world between 2023 and 2030."

Youn Ho Ko, Managing Director Middle East of Korea Western Power, added: “We are delighted to announce that we have closed the financing of the Manah 1 solar project, and that we are the first Korean company to win a project in Oman. This success is due to the strong partnership with EDF Renewables and its extensive experience, as well as the unwavering support of Société Générale, KEXIM Bank and Bank Muscat.”

Once commissioned, the plant will supply around 50,000 Omani households with low-carbon electricity, which will avoid the emission of around 700,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. 

Key project data:

– Homes supplied: 50,000.

– 700,000 tonnes of CO2 avoided per year. 

- Technology :

* Around 1 million bifacial panels.

* Single axis trackers.