Egypt scales up on renewable energy

Egypt scales up on renewable energy

Egypt has increased its energy generation capacity with the commissioning of the 5000MW Amunet project.

By Leon Louw founder of WhyAfrica and editor of the WhyAfrica magazine.

The largest wind farm in Africa was commissioned in Ras Ghareb in the Red Sea Governate of Egypt last week.

United Arab Emirates (UAE) based AMEA Power recently announced that the 500MW wind power plant is now operational.

In November last year AMEA completed a 500MW Solar PV Plant in Aswan, bringing the company’s total commissioned capacity in Egypt to 1 gigawatt (GW) within just six months.

The company has huge ambitions to increase its presence in the African renewable energy space substantially.

The Amunet Wind Power Plant is a joint venture between AMEA Power (60%) and Sumitomo Corporation (40%). It is expected to generate approximately 2,500 GWh of electricity annually which is enough to power more than 500,000 homes. The project was completed 2.5 months ahead of schedule.

UAE expands African footprint

UAE based firms are rapidly increasing their African footprint, especially in the energy and mining sectors. They aim to diversify their supply chains in specifically the critical mineral space which is directly linked to the manufacturing of solar panels, wind turbines and battery storage.

Yesterday, WhyAfrica reported about the UAE based company International Resources Holdings (IRH) acquisition of the majority shareholding in Alphamin Resources’ Bisie tin mine in the DRC.

IRH is also heavily invested in Zambia and is rapidly expanding its DRC footprint.

UAE firms are also investing in, amongst others, South Africa, Ethiopia and Mali.

Minerals needed for renewable energy   

Keep in mind that the following minerals are needed to manufacture wind turbines: Iron ore, copper, aluminum, REEs (Neodymium and Dysprosium), concrete (limestone, clay, sand), fibreglass and resin (for the blades), zinc, nickel and chromium.

Key minerals for manufacturing solar panels include tin, copper, silicon, silver, aluminum, glass (silica sand), indium, gallium and lead in some types of solder.

Read more on the WhyAfrica website

Read more about energy and mining in Africa, and about the sustainable use and responsible development of Africa’s natural resources on the WhyAfrica website, your one-stop shop for on the ground information and business intelligence about Africa.

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Image: The Amunet Wind Power Plant in Egypt is the largest wind farm in Africa. Image credit: AEMA

Egypt scales up on renewable energy