The consortium consisting of EDF Renewables and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, Masdar, has completed the financing of the Dumat Al Jandal utility-scale wind project in Saudi Arabia, with the backing of Saudi and international banks.

With an installed capacity of 400 megawatts, the Dumat Al Jandal project will be Saudi Arabia’s first wind farm and the largest in the Middle East.

The Renewable Energy Project Development Office (Repdo) of the Saudi Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources has awarded the $500-million Dumat Al Jandal wind farm in January following a call for tenders in August 2017.

The winning consortium submitted the most cost-competitive bid of $21.3 per megawatt-hour, MWh.

Led by EDF Renewables and Masdar, a subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company, project construction will begin shortly and commercial operations are due to start in the first quarter of 2022.

Vestas, a wind turbine company, is the contracted wind-turbine technology provider and responsible for the engineering, procurement and construction contract, said the statement from Masdar.

TSK, a Spanish industrial group, will be responsible for the balance of plant, while CG Holdings will provide the substations and high-voltage solutions.

"We are delighted to take part in the first wind project in the country, which is set to be the most powerful wind farm in the Middle East. This new step reflects the quality of our partnership with Masdar, which has enabled us to jointly submit the most competitive bid," said Bruno Bensasson, EDF Group senior executive president responsible for Renewable Energies, and chairman and CEO of EDF Renewables.

Wind power is now representing a renewable and economical solution in the energy mix, he stated.

"This new project demonstrates our ambitions in the country and represents another step forward under the EDF Group’s Cap 2030 strategy," he added.