Abu Dhabi's Masdar is partnering with Emirates Utilities Development Company (EUDC) and Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Energy to explore the development of a giga-scale, round-the-clock clean energy project in the Central Asian country.
The project is designed to deliver up to 1 gigawatt of continuous, baseload power and is aimed at supporting Uzbekistan’s clean energy ambitions through cross-border partnerships, Masdar said in a statement on Thursday. The EUDC is the development arm of Etihad Water and Electricity.
JSC Uzenergosotish, Uzbekistan’s state-owned joint-stock company, is to act as the off-taker for the project’s output, Masdar added.
The project will add to Masdar’s portfolio of 2 gigawatts renewable energy projects in the country, with investments exceeding $2 billion. With its round-the-clock projects, Masdar is “overcoming the challenge of intermittency and reimagining the potential of renewable energy for the information age”, said Masdar chief executive Mohamed Al Ramahi. He added that the project would build on the company’s experience in renewables and battery storage.
"Projects of this scale show how clean energy can deliver reliable, round-the-clock power while supporting economic growth and energy security," said Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure.
Last year, Masdar made investments worth $15 billion in renewable energy projects worldwide, Mr Al Ramahi said this month. The company is more than halfway through reaching its target of 100 gigawatts of renewable capacity by 2030, he said at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW).
Masdar, jointly owned by Taqa, Adnoc and Mubadala, is active in more than 40 countries, with a combined capacity of 51 gigawatts. The company's renewables projects span from the Middle East and Central Asia to Europe and the US.
The company also said this week that it had entered into a partnership with UK-based Octopus Energy to collaborate on clean energy systems in the UK and Africa. The initial pacts, signed during ADSW, focus on developing local power systems for data centres in the UK and renewable grids in Africa.
Masdar also has a strong portfolio in the US, with wind, solar and battery energy storage projects in California, Texas, New York state and New Mexico, its website says. In the Middle East and Africa, it is active in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Jordan, Egypt and Morocco.
The company is currently developing the "world’s largest" integrated solar and battery storage system in Abu Dhabi – 5.2 gigawatts solar PV and 19-gigawatt hours battery energy storage system.
It is also exploring a similar round-the-clock renewable energy project in Kazakhstan that will provide up to 500 megawatts of baseload power, Masdar said on Thursday.
Such projects can provide a blueprint that can be replicated internationally to meet the growing demand for reliable, clean power, the company added.
