When complete, the Egyptian wind project could offset 550,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions
Lekela breaks ground in 250MW wind farm in Egypt. (Credit: Unsplash/Matt Artz.)
Lekela Power, a joint venture of Actis Capital and Mainstream Renewable Power, has broken ground on the 250MW West Bakr wind project in Egypt.
The West Bakr wind project will be located 30km northwest of Ras Ghareb, on the shores of the Gulf of Suez. Once operational, it is expected to increase the country’s wind energy capacity by 18%.
The project will also contribute to the country’s goal to generate 20% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2022.
The West Bakr wind farm will create 500 jobs during the construction phase
When completed, the wind project could displace 550,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually. During the construction phase, nearly 500 jobs could be created.
The project is part of Lekela’s portfolio of wind projects across Senegal, Ghana and South Africa. Currently, the company has more than 1GW in operation or construction.
Lekela Egypt general manager Faisal Eissa said: “We are looking forward to the construction phase with our partner Siemens Gamesa to deliver the project by the end of 2021. This is what we pledged for with the Egyptian government in February 2019 when we signed the PPA with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company.
“The project’s financial close followed in August 2019 with a commitment to create shared value with local communities. We have recently met with the Ras Ghareb community, where we discussed employment and training opportunities, to benefit the local community both economically and in terms of skills and knowledge.”
Separately, Lekela has announced the inauguration of the 50MW first phase of the 158.7MW Parc Eolien Taiba N’Diaye (PETN), the first utility-scale wind farm in Senegal.
The wind farm’s first phase with 16 turbines began operations last December.