Chinese engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor Shanghai Electric has completed phase B of the fifth phase of the 900MW Mohammed bin Rashid (MBR) Solar Park in Dubai.
After connecting phase A to the grid in 2021, and with phase B now done, construction for phase C is underway and is expected to be completed by 2023, said project manager at Shanghai Electric, Meng Chuanmin.
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Saudi Arabian developer ACWA Power enlisted the Chinese EPC as the contractor for the fifth phase of the project in 2020, which consists of three stages (A, B and C), with a total installed capacity of 1,050MW.
A significant part of Dubai’s clean energy strategy, the MBR Solar Park comprises both PV and concentrated solar power (CSP) technologies and will boast a total capacity of around 5GW once complete.
Shanghai Electric had previously participated in the fourth phase of the MBR project with the construction of 250MW of solar PV and 700MW of CSP, which can store the thermal energy during the day to later be used for electricity generation at night.
Aside from global supply chain issues caused by the pandemic, the EPC had to overcome issues regarding the natural movement and fluidity of sand dunes, which increased the cost of the project by US$3 million.
“The team overcame the difficulties and ensured the procurement and delivery of the raw materials for the project were timely implemented to avoid any delay to the overall progress,” Meng added.