The 117MW Tafilah wind power project, western Jordan, is in the final stages of financial close, having secured a loan of $221 million from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in partnership with various European and regional financial institutions.
It will be the first utility-scale wind installation, and the biggest privately owned, in the region.
Given the problems in the Middle East, it is perhaps surprising to see such a large project moving forward, albeit one under development for a number of years. Explaining the project's progress, Steve Sawyer, secretary general of the Global Wind Energy Council, said: "The short answer is that there is clear political will in the country which has no oil and relatively little political unrest at present, and good relations with international financing partners."
Jordan imports 97% of its energy needs and is facing rapid growth in demand. In recent years it has been establishing policies in support of renewable energy, with a target of 10% of renewables in the power mix by 2020. Out of this, wind will contribute around 1.2GW, compared with just 1.45MW today......
The project is being developed by the Jordan Wind Power Company (JWPC), a special-purpose vehicle owned by Euro-Mediterranean fund InfraMed (50%), Abu Dhabi-based clean-tech investor Masdar (31%) and Cyprus-based developer EP Global Energy (19%), which specialises in emerging markets. JWPC will also build, own and operate the plant, while Vestas is widely tipped as the turbine supplier. Commercial operation is scheduled for 2015.
http://www.windpowermonthly.com/article/1223729/...lity-scale-project |
