Egypt Signs Landmark $1.8 Billion Deal to Build Africa’s Largest Solar Power Plant
Egypt has secured a groundbreaking agreement with Norwegian renewable energy giant Scatec to develop what will become Africa’s largest solar and battery storage installation, marking a major leap forward in the nation’s clean energy transition.
The Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) signed a Power Purchase Agreement with Scatec ASA for a total capacity of 1,950MW of solar power and 3,900MWh of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS). The combined project represents the largest investment in Scatec’s history and will deliver continuous, around-the-clock renewable baseload power to Egypt’s national grid.
Under the 25-year, US Dollar-denominated pay-as-produced agreement, Scatec will develop one integrated solar and BESS hybrid system, along with two standalone battery storage projects designed to provide essential grid stability and support services. The plant is expected to generate approximately 6,000 GWh of renewable energy annually.
“Signing this groundbreaking PPA further cements Scatec’s leading position and commitment to delivering reliable, renewable energy at a large scale in Africa,” said Terje Pilskog, CEO of Scatec. “By integrating advanced solar and battery technologies, we are providing Egypt with sustainable, around-the-clock power and grid-stabilizing services, supporting both the country’s energy transition and the region’s long-term economic development.”
Scatec, which has established a strong presence in Egypt through its contributions to the Benban Solar Park and the nation’s first green hydrogen facility in Ain Sokhna, will provide Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC), Asset Management (AM), and Operations & Maintenance (O&M) services for the projects. The company will serve as lead developer and plans to invite additional equity partners, with financial close expected in the second half of 2026.
In a separate but related development, Egypt has also signed agreements worth over $1.8 billion with Scatec and China’s Sungrow to develop two major renewable energy projects. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly attended the signing ceremony alongside senior government officials.
The first project, titled “Energy Valley,” will be developed by Scatec in Minya Governorate. The 1.7-gigawatt solar power plant will be integrated with 4 gigawatt-hours of BESS distributed across Minya, Qena, and Alexandria.
The second agreement involves Sungrow establishing a battery storage manufacturing factory within the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA) Egypt zone in the El-Sokhna industrial area, part of the Suez Canal Economic Zone. Spanning 50,000 square meters, the facility will be the first in the Middle East and Africa to produce BESS, with an expected annual production capacity of 10 GWh at full operation. Production is scheduled to commence in April 2027.
Both projects align with Egypt’s ambitious plans to increase the share of renewable energy in the electricity mix, targeting over 42% by 2030 and 60-65% by 2040.
Source: africaoilgasreport.com, egyptoil-gas.com, energy-pedia.com
