Investments Worth 97 Million EGP In The Solar Power Plant In El Gouna
Generating 14 Gigawatt-Hours Annually With Ambitious Plans To Meet Demand & Achieve Environmental Sustainability
El Gouna, one of Orascom Development’s fully integrated sustainable towns, organized a field visit to its solar plant in partnership with SolarizEgypt. The solar plant covers an area of 245 thousand square meters, with investments worth 97 million Egyptian pounds, producing 14 GWh annually. El Gouna’s solar plant has a 25-year Independent Power Producer (IPP) self-consumption system and a capacity of 7.128 MWp to cover 16% of the town’s needs.
The solar power produced supports lighting the town’s streets and buildings, reducing pressure on energy consumption throughout the year. El Gouna also plans to expand its solar plant and double production in the near future.
Planting 384.9 trees
The impact of clean energy generated by the solar plant is equivalent to approximately removing 1,187 cars off the road for one year, saving 1,007,969 gallons of gas, reducing 7,106.6 kg of carbon dioxide emissions, saving 2,879.7 kg of standard coal, and planting 384.9 trees.
The field visit was attended by Major General Ahmed Marzouk ,Secretary General of the Red Sea Governorate, Mr. Mahmoud Abdel Hakim, Director of the Clean Energy Department at Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency, Ministry of Environment, Mr. Mohamed Amer, Chief Executive Officer of El Gouna and Mr. Yaseen Abdel-Ghaffar, Founder of SolarizEgypt, in addition to a group media representatives and journalists.
The visit aligned with Orascom Development’s role as a responsible investor and demonstrated efforts towards achieving economic, social, and environmental development conforming to Egypt Vision 2030 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Moreover, the solar plant strengthens El Gouna’s position as the Middle East’s first sustainable town since 2014, supported by the United Nations Environment Program.
A sustainable ecosystem
Commenting on developing a sustainable ecosystem in the governorate, Mr. Mohamed Amer, El Gouna’s CEO, said: “Orascom Development has been committed to delivering its vision of creating sustainable, integrated towns for more than 33 years since El Gouna’s inception. With today’s visit, we affirm our commitment to Egypt’s strategy of maximizing the use of renewable energy sources, enhancing the country’s environmental sustainability practices, and adhering to the UN SDGs to guarantee clean energy with affordable prices.”
He added: “We are proud that El Gouna represents a model for a sustainable town in Egypt; through our commitment towards our individuals and communities, we were able to reduce our ecological footprint and reach the success we are witnessing today.”
He further praised the cooperation and exchange of services with SolarizEgypt, as El Gouna provided square meters of land for the solar plant, and SolarizEgypt invested in building the plant. In return, El Gouna purchases the energy produced.
El Gouna pursues several environmental sustainability initiatives, including using 100% recycled water to irrigate 75% of its gardens and outdoor areas and sorting 100% of its solid waste while recycling 75% of it in cooperation with Ertekaa, the waste management company founded in 2014. An average of 15 tons of solid waste is collected daily in El Gouna. Additionally, the town’s 18 hotels have all received the “Green Star Award,” awarded by the Chamber of Hotel Establishments and the Ministry of Tourism & Antiques, adhering to environmental sustainability standards and practices in which the hotels also contribute to supporting the protection and preservation of coral reefs. The town also has 18 desalination plants and monitors consumption through monthly reports indicating the source of electricity, fuel, fresh water, irrigation water, and waste.
Mr. Yaseen Abdel-Ghaffar, Founder of SolarizEgypt praised the cooperation with El Gouna, saying: “With a precedent experience of more than 50 megawatts of projects, SolarizEgypt is the market leader in commercial and industrial solar energy. We are determined to continue pushing for the widespread adoption of solar energy in the Egyptian market and being part of this initiative right ahead of hosting the United Nations Climate Conference (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh to discuss the global environmental agenda and next steps towards achieving sustainable development.”
Different activities
El Gouna’s strategy promotes public awareness through different activities, including the annual “Earth Week” celebration, which spreads environmental awareness and sheds light on various initiatives. Earth Week, held every March, highlights the importance of preserving the environment through many workshops and activities that allow the town’s residents to engage. It also works to increase their environmental awareness and responsibility towards the environment and community.
Moreover, El Gouna is seeking to rehabilitate mangrove trees because of their ability to adapt to the region’s drought and high salinity conditions. Such environments constitute an important part of the coastal plant life system, as it works to protect from erosion resulting from rising sea levels due to global warming and climatic influences. As a vital addition to the ongoing efforts to preserve this precious and endangered ecosystem, the town planted 2,000 trees under the supervision of the Ministry of Environment to develop long-term sustainability of mangrove cultivation and the spread of mangroves.
It is worth noting that El Gouna exemplifies the best model for an integrated town, with all-year-round facilities, namely houses, hotels, schools, hospitals and services. It comprises everything that should be present in any town, while entrenching sustainability within the town’s DNA across all of its operations. As for e-mobility methods, El Gouna uses environmentally friendly transportation such as e-bikes and electric tuk-tuks in cooperation with three tuk-tuk companies. Currently, more than 20% of tuk-tuks in El-Gouna are electric using clean energy.
The most prominent destination
El Gouna, one of Orascom Development’s fully integrated towns, has been the most prominent destination nestled on the Red Sea in an area of 36.9 million square meters for more than 30 years. The town encompasses 9,000 delivered residential units, 18 hotels, schools offering international and national curricula, an international hospital, start-up workspace facility, three marinas, two world-class golf courses, a culture & conference center, and an array of services. With a population of more than 20,000 residents, El Gouna is located near the city of Hurghada and only 20 mins away from Hurghada international airport.
The Egyptian solar energy market
SolarizEgypt has been a significant player in the Egyptian solar energy market since 2013. The company is certified in financing, installing & operating photovoltaic (PV) solar power plants. The company has secured a portfolio of 50 MWs as PPA contracts with major conglomerates in different industries. Its mission is to offer the commercial & industrial sectors better, cheaper, and cleaner alternatives to conventional electrical energy. SolarizEgypt is a subsidiary of a utility platform serving a full-fledged solution in different business lines, such as water desalination, waste management and power generation.
SolarizEgypt entered into a new partnership with Amarenco Group early this year. This definitive agreement between both parties is to co-develop 300MW of assets at an estimated budget of 4 billion Egyptian Pounds (255MUSD) in the upcoming four years.
