Dubai Electricity and Water Authority receives the lowest price for solar energy.

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority PJSC (DEWA) today received two (2) bids from ACWA Power and Masdar. Masdar submitted the lowest bid of USD 1.62154 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for the 1,800MW 6th phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park using photovoltaic (PV) solar panels, based on the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model. This phase will become operational in stages starting from Q4 of 2024.

“DEWA has broken its own record and achieved the lowest price (levelized cost) for PV solar power projects based on the IPP model in Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. This supports the wise leadership's priority toward clean and renewable energy projects, which has contributed to their global cost reduction. The projects at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world, are of great interest to international developers and reaffirm investor confidence in the major projects supported by the Government of Dubai. DEWA has attracted huge investments to the UAE from the private sector and foreign banks, leading to increased cash flow to the economy of Dubai and the UAE,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA.

“Achieving the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, and Dubai Net Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050 to provide 100% of Dubai’s total power capacity from clean energy sources by 2050 requires an approximate capacity of 42,000MW of clean and renewable energy by 2050. The current total production capacity of solar plants at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park is 2,327 MW. Additionally, there are 533MW under construction at the Solar Park. Upon completing  the 1,800MW 6th phase the solar park’s production capacity will reach 4,660MW,” added Al Tayer.

Al Tayer said that DEWA is committed to completing the phases of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park according to the highest international standards using the latest solar power technologies to enhance the shift towards a green sustainable economy by increasing the share of clean and renewable energy. He noted that when completed, the solar park will reduce over 6.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually.

DEWA commenced the procurement process of the 6th phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park by issuing an Expression of Interest (EOI) on 14 September 2022, followed by issuing the Request for Qualification (RFQ) to twenty-three (23) interested bidders on 15 November 2022. Following a rigorous qualification process, DEWA prequalified seven (7) international bidders to whom the Request for Proposal (RFP) was issued on 30 December 2022.

DEWA has commenced the evaluation of the Bids received and aims to select the Preferred Bidder during Q3 2023.