ACWA Power commences work at Saudi Arabia’s first renewable energy plant

Saudi-based utilities provider ACWA Power announced the successful connection of the Sakaka Solar photovoltaic (PV) plant - the first renewable energy project in the Kingdom - to the national grid.

The project commenced initial production under a pilot phase according to schedule – with full commercial operation to be achieved before 2019-end.

The solar project established a 100% local employment rate within the first year of operation, with 90% of the workforce comprised by the youth of Al Jouf region.

Additionally, Sakaka PV IPP registered over 30% of contractual local content during the construction and development phases.

The project also recorded more than 3 million safe working hours without any injuries during the development and construction.

“We are confident to deliver the project on schedule and commercial operation of the plant before the end of this year at the highest levels of quality, safety, and security,” Mohammad Abunayyan, Chairman of ACWA Power, said.

The SAR 1.2 billion Sakaka plant was awarded to an ACWA Power led consortium at a world record tariff of 8.781 halalas/kWh. The 300 megawatts (MW) project will supply power to 45,000 Al Jouf households through clean energy to offset over 500 tons of carbon dioxide a year.