ACWA Power secures US$2.3 billion in loan funding for 4.55GW Saudi solar portfolio

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Solar panels in Saudi Arabia.
Solar panels in Saudi Arabia. Credit: Arctech

Saudi power developer ACWA Power has secured loan financing of US$2.3 billion (SAR8.6 billion) to support the construction of three new solar projects in Saudi Arabia, with a combined capacity of 4.55GW.

The company announced the portfolio last May, signing an agreement with Badeel, the water and electric holding company of the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), for the projects. ACWA Power will retain a 50.1% equity in each of the projects, while Badeel will hold the remaining equity.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

While ACWA Power initially expected to reach financial close for the projects in the third quarter of last year, the company only acquired the latest round of loan funding from a consortium of banks last week.

This consortium includes Saudi banks Riyad Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi, Saudi Awwal bank and the Saudi National Bank, in addition to overseas investors Mizuho Bank, Standard Chartered and HSBC. With the latest round of loan funding in place, the total investment in these new solar projects will come to US$3.4 billion, a considerable sum that could go a long way towards helping Saudi Arabia reach its ambitious clean energy goals.

While the government aims to meet half of the country’s energy demands with renewable power by 2030, renewables accounted for just 1.3% of the Saudi energy mix in 2023. Developers will need to add 58.7GW of new renewable capacity by the end of this decade if the government is to reach its clean power generation target, and with the development of these projects, the PIF has now supported five solar projects through the government’s National Renewable Energy Programme.

The five projects have a combined capacity of 8.1GW, and both significant financial investment, and the backing of a range of investors, could be vital to achieving the government’s clean power goal.

Last October, Chinese solar module manufacturer JinkoSolar agreed to supply 3.8GW of panels to ACWA Power, for use at the Ar Rass 2 project and the Al Kahfah facility, two of the projects in the company’s 4.55GW portfolio.

Read Next

June 6, 2025
rPlus Energies has secured more than US$500 million for an 800MW solar-plus-storage project in Emery County, Utah, US.  
June 5, 2025
Policy uncertainty in the US is likely to disrupt investment in clean energy, according to a recent report from Crux.
June 3, 2025
Danish renewables firm European Energy has secured a €145 million (US$158 million) long-term loan to finance a 78.5MW solar park co-located with a 50MW battery storage plant in Anykščiai, Lithuania.
June 3, 2025
GameChange Solar has announced plans to double the capacity of its Saudi Arabia tracker component manufacturing facility to 6GW.
June 2, 2025
A new manufacturing method has produced tandem perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells with a conversion efficiency of 27.8%.
May 28, 2025
Renewables developer Solaria has reached an agreement in principle with Spanish bank Banco Sabadell to finance a 175MW solar PV plant in Spain.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
June 17, 2025
Napa, USA
Upcoming Webinars
June 30, 2025
10am PST / 6pm BST
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece