Saudi Arabia gets 4 bids for 400-MW wind power project

Saudi Arabia’s Renewable Energy Project Development Office (REPDO) has received four bids for the country's first 400-megawatt Dumat Al Jandal wind plant in Al-Jouf, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

The bidders include ACWA Power, the renewable energy units of European utilities Electricite de France and Enel SpA, and Engie SA’s International Power.

The Kingdom has delayed its plans for opening of the bid envelopes. The new date for the opening of the bid envelopes will be announced later by the energy ministry, the report said.

Last month, the Kingdom and Japan’s SoftBank Group signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a $200 billion, 200 gigawatts of solar power project by 2030.

Saudi Arabia is increasingly focusing on renewable energy sources as it looks to diversify its energy mix and economy.

The National Renewable Energy Program (NREP) targets 9.5 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2023 in support of the Vision 2030, with an interim target of 3.45 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2020.