Egypt: Gamesa secures deal of 160 MW

Gamesa, a global technology leader in wind energy, has secured two new EPC orders for the construction of two wind farms in Egypt. The facilities will have combined capacity of 160 MW and are located in the Gabbal El Zayt region along the Red Sea coastline.

The first contract, for the supply of a total of 120 MW, was awarded by Egypt's New & Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) by means of international public tender in which the leading OEMs participated. It encompasses the supply, installation and commissioning of a total of 60 G80-2.0 MW wind turbines at a new project which is being funded by the Spanish government through its Fund for International Business Expansion (FIEM for its acronym in Spanish). Delivery of the wind turbines is scheduled to begin in October 2016, while the facility is slated for commissioning in the third quarter of 2017.

The second order, meanwhile, is for the supply of another 20 G80-2.0 MW turbines (40 MW) in order to expand an existing operational 200-MW complex, which was also awarded to Gamesa by NREA by means of international public tender in 2011. These 20 new turbines will be delivered during the last quarter of this year for commissioning in early 2017. As with phase one of this project, the expansion will once again be financed by the German development bank, KfW.

On aggregate, the company has been contracted to install a total of 80 of its G80-2.0 MW turbines, the optimal model for the desert conditions, corrosive atmosphere and high temperatures typical of the Egyptian market, thanks to its robust build, reliability and adaptability.

In addition, since these are EPC contracts, the company will also handle construction of the civil engineering and electric infrastructure needed to install and operate these facilities and will handle their maintenance for the next three years.

Gamesa is the leading OEM in Egypt, having entered the market in 2003 when it won its first turbine supply contract for the Zafarana wind farm. Since then, the company has installed nearly 600 MW in this country and services over 400 MW under O&M agreements.

Besides Egypt, Gamesa is present in other African countries including Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, Mauritius and Kenya, in its capacity as turbine supplier and installer and wind farm O&M service provider. The company is the largest wind turbine OEM in Africa in terms of installed capacity, having installed almost 1,150 MW to date.