Tunisia picks Engie-Nareva duo to deploy 120MWp solar project

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Image credit: McKay Savage / Flickr

Tunisia has selected an international consortium to install a utility-scale solar project, one of five plants to go under the auction hammer under a government programme.

Developers Engie and Nareva will team up to deliver a 120MWp PV installation in the Gafsa Governorate, a desert territory a five-hour drive to the southwest of capital Tunis.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The duo will develop, design, fund, build, run and maintain the utility-scale solar plant, contracted by Tunisia under a 500MW IPP solar tender it launched last May.

Engie and Nareva emerged as the Gafsa preferred bidders after submitting a bid of around 79.9 Tunisian dinar millimes per kWh (US$0.0272/kWh).

The bid tariffs were unveiled by a government advisor on social media last July, followed by the release of full winner list of the 500MW solar tender in December.      

Engie and Nareva’s Gafsa project aside, the four other solar schemes include a 100MW venture (contracted to TBEA/AMEA), a 200MW installation and two 50MW plants (Scatec Solar).

The tender programme is meant to help Tunisia tap into its abundant solar resource, in a bid to curb the country’s reliance on gas imports even as it tries to satisfy rising power demand.

The Maghreb state – one of many to witness regime change following the Arab Spring citizen uprising of the early 2010s – has set a goal for renewables to cover 30% of power needs by 2030.

To reach the policy target, Tunisia must deploy 3.8GW in new renewables over the decade. The PV projects installed prior to the 500MW tender fell below the 5-10MW capacity range.

Through the Gafsa solar project in particular, Tunisia is hoping to unlock enough green power to sustain 100,000 homes and bring CO2 emission savings of 150,000 tonnes every year.

Read Next

October 8, 2025
The NSW Independent Planning Commission has granted planning approval for Potentia Energy's 500MW Tallawang solar-plus-storage project.
October 8, 2025
US solar module prices jumped in Q3 2025 as developers scrambled to meet the 2 September 2025 safe harbour deadline for Investment Tax Credit (ITC) qualification, according to supply chain platform Anza.
Premium
October 8, 2025
PV Talk: Smart Energy Council's Nigel Morris reflects on how Australia has become a global testbed for distributed solar and storage innovation.
October 8, 2025
Officials from Norway and Egypt have agreed provisional terms for the financing of the Dandara solar park in Egypt, which is being built and operated by Norwegian IPP Scatec.
October 8, 2025
Saatvik Green Energy has secured new solar PV module orders worth more than INR7 billion (US$84 million), to be delivered in this financial year.
October 8, 2025
Australia's NEM achieved a new minimum operational demand record of 9,666MW, marking a 4% decrease from the previous record.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK