ACWA Power closes financing for 320 MW Red Sea solar with 1.3 GWh energy storage project

A group of developers led by ACWA Power has obtained a US$1.3 billion funding for the Red Sea project, which would include a 320 MW solar array and a 1.3 GWh off-grid battery on Saudi Arabia's west coast. A consortium of Saudi and international banks will provide the senior debt, which will be denominated in dollars and riyals.

Last year, Chinese electronics firm Huawei Digital Power was given the largest contract of its kind for an off-grid battery energy storage system.

The system is sized to fit the project's initial scope and can be scaled up to fit the complex around it. The solar-plus-storage complex will allow the Red Sea Project to remain off-grid and powered by renewables, with phase one set to begin late this year and be completed next year.