And Masdar is expanding renewables development in Uzbekistan: UAE renewables giant Masdar signed a joint development agreement with the government of Uzbekistan to develop renewables projects worth some 2 GW and 500 MW of battery energy storage system (BESS) facilities across multiple locations, Wam reported on Friday. The financials and timelines of the various projects that will be established in Uzbekistan were not disclosed.

Part of Masdar’s expansion plans in the Central Asian country: Masdar achieved financialclose on three solar plants to be set up in Uzbekistan’s Sherabad, Samarkand, and Jizzakh that would yield c. 900 MW in April. Construction on the three projects is set to begin in 1H 2023, with the plants going live in 2024. Masdar also actively contributed to Uzbekistan’s first 100 MW IPP solar project Nur Navoi, which has been operational since 2021. Back in September, Masdar achieved financial close on the USD 600 mn 500 MW Zarafshan wind project in Uzbekistan — Central Asia’s largest wind farm. The company was also awarded the 250 MW Bukhara Solar PV project, which includes a 62 MW battery energy storage system in late 2022, according to a company statement.

ALSO- The IFC is providing a helping hand: The International Finance Corporation (IFC) will support the country in its target to up its renewables production capacity by 12 GW by 2030, and will act as lead transaction advisor for the country’s power distribution sector’s first public-private partnership with the aim of improving grid connectivity to some 700k energy customers in Uzbekistan, according to a statement. The agreement will see the IFC facilitate private sector investments in a bid to modernize the country’s aging electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure — which sees the country unnecessarily lose considerable amounts of energy — and establish a renewables-friendly grid, the statement notes.

Tags: