COP27: UAE, Egypt join hands to develop 10-gigawatt wind project

UAE's President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has announced the decision to develop a 10-gigawatt onshore wind project with Egypt on the sidelines of the COP27 summit in Sharm El Sheikh.

It's "consistent with our commitment to advance renewable energy solutions that support sustainable development," Sheikh Mohamed highlighted.

"I joined my brother President Abdel Fattah El Sisi at COP27 to witness the signing of an MOU between our two nations to develop a 10-gigawatt onshore wind project in Egypt," he wrote on his official Twitter handle.

Consistent with our commitment to advance renewable energy solutions that support sustainable development, I joined my brother President Abdel Fattah El Sisi at COP27 to witness the signing of an MOU between our two nations to develop a 10-gigawatt onshore wind project in Egypt. pic.twitter.com/qBeX7AnF0o

— محمد بن زايد (@MohamedBinZayed) November 8, 2022

The leaders witnessed the signing of the MoU between Masdar, Infinity Power and Hassan Allam Utilities to develop the onshore wind project in Egypt – one of the largest wind farms in the world.

When completed, the wind farm will produce 47,790 GWh of clean energy annually and offset 23.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions – equivalent to around 9 per cent of Egypt’s current CO2 emissions.

The project will be part of Egypt’s Green Corridor initiative – a grid dedicated to renewable energy projects – and will contribute to Egypt’s goal of ensuring renewable energy makes up 42 percent of its energy mix by 2035.

The wind farm will also save Egypt an estimated $5 billion in annual natural gas costs, and help create as many as 100,000 jobs.

Direct employment in the construction phase is estimated at around 30,000, with as many as 70,000 people being employed indirectly. After construction, around 3,200 jobs will be added for operation and maintenance.