Construction of the 800MW phase three of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai will start at the end of January, Gulf Business reported.
GranSolar, Acciona, and Ghella were awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract. The construction is set to be completed in three stages, with the first 200MW expected to be operational by the first half of 2018, and then two 300MW stages will follow. The announcement after the Masdar-led consortium set a record-low price of $2.99 per kilowatt-hour, a record-breaking price agreed for solar power and the power purchase agreements (PPAs), according to PV Magazine.
The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park is the largest single-site solar park in the world, with a planned capacity of 1,000MW by 2020 and 5,000MW by 2030, and a total investment of $13.6bn. Upon completion, it will eventually save approximately 6.5 million tons per annum in emissions.
The park will also be connected to the World Expo site, providing it with 200MW of power. It will also include an Innovation Centre, which will act as a museum, exhibition and convention centre for solar and renewable energy.
It is expected to attract tourists, universities, schools, companies, and partners. The centre will be open to solar energy manufacturers and developers, and has a specialized and permanent convention centre for events, conferences, training and meetings on green initiatives.
