Egypt partners with France’s EDF on clean energy: Egypt’s New and Renewable Energy Agency (NREA) has signed two cooperation agreements with French clean energy developer EDF Renewables as part of state plans to increase renewable energy generation, enhance electrical transmission capacity, and minimize grid losses, according to a statement. Egypt is currently devising a strategy to establish 47 energy control centers to monitor power distribution under its target of optimizing grid performance. Egypt’s NREA recently secured EUR 500 mn from undisclosed financiers in a bid to achieve its target of having renewables comprise 42% of the country’s energy mix by 2030 and 60% by 2040.

EDF already has a foothold in the country: The French company acquireda strategic stake in Egypt-based solar energy provider KarmSolar back in 2019 as part of its target of bringing up its clean energy portfolio to 50 GW by 2030. On the sidelines of COP27 last year, the company, alongside UAE firms AMEA Power and Masdar, announced plans to build a USD 3 bn facility to produce green fuel for ships in partnership with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE). The Ain Sokhna-based plant will eventually produce 350k tons of fuel each year, with an initially targeted 140k-ton annual production capacity in the initial phase. Construction of the plant is expected to begin in 2024, with operations slated to begin in 2026.

Egypt is also courting the UAE: On the sidelines of the Africa Climate Summit in Kenya this week, Egypt’s Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad met with UAE counterpart Mariam Almheiri to discuss knowledge transfer and cooperation in clean energy, waste management, reforestation, and climate mitigation ahead of COP28 in Dubai later this year, according to a separate statement. Egypt wants to rake in more UAE private sector financing to bolster its green economy sector, the ministry noted.

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