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Masdar’s mega solar deal

June 9, 2010 3:18 by Samuel Potter

Masdar, the renewable energy initiative, has appointed French company Total and Abengoa Solar, from Spain, as partners on a $600 milliion concentrated solar power project, reports Zawya.com.

The project, the world’s largest, will begin in the third quarter of this year, with Abu Dhabi government-owned Masdar leading the venture, and Total and Abengoa each taking a 20 percent stake. “Shams 1” will take about two years to complete, says Zawya.com, and will have a capacity of 100 megawatts.

The new plant will cover a 2.5-square kilometer area, situated at Madinat Zayed about 120 kilometers southwest of Abu Dhabi. It will have capacity to supply 20,000 households.

Shams 1 will be the first utility-scale, commercial solar power project in the UAE, and the first CSP plant to be registered under the United Nations’ Clean Development Mechanism. It will displace about 175,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year, the equivalent of taking 15,000 cars off Abu Dhabi’s roads.

Tags: Abengoa, Abu Dhabi, concentrated solar power, Energy, Masdar, Masdar City, power, renewable, solar, solar power, Total, UAE