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Saudi Power Procurement Company Signs Purchase Agreements for 3 Solar Energy Projects 

Officials are seen at the signing ceremony. (SPA)
Officials are seen at the signing ceremony. (SPA)
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Saudi Power Procurement Company Signs Purchase Agreements for 3 Solar Energy Projects 

Officials are seen at the signing ceremony. (SPA)
Officials are seen at the signing ceremony. (SPA)

The Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) signed on Wednesday Power Purchase Agreements (PPA) for three new solar photovoltaic projects with a consortium of ACWA Power Company, and the Water & Electricity Holding Company (Badeel), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and Aramco Power, a fully-owned subsidiary of Saudi Aramco.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.

These new projects with a capacity of 5,500 MW are part of the National Renewable Energy Program, which is supervised by the Ministry of Energy.

The three solar projects are:

Haden Solar PV, in Makkah Province, with a total capacity of 2,000 MW and an LCOE of 1.58762 cent/kWh (5.95356 Halala/kWh)

Al-Muwaih Solar PV, in Makkah Province, with a total capacity of 2,000 MW and an LCOE of 1.60852 cent/kWh (6.03194 Halala/kWh)

Al-Khushaybi PV, in Qassim Province, with a total capacity of 1,500 MW and an LCOE of 1.67289 cent/kWh (6.27334 Halala/kWh)

Starting 2024, Saudi Arabia will tender annually new renewable energy projects with a total capacity of 20 GW with the aim of reaching between 100 to 130 GW by 2030, depending on the growth of electricity demand.

Since the start of the renewables program to date, 21 projects have been awarded, including the projects that were signed on Wednesday with a total capacity of 19 GW. Of the 21 projects, seven with a total capacity of 4.1 GW are now connected to the grid, eight with a total capacity of 8.2 GW are under construction, and six with a total capacity of 7 GW are in the financial close stage.

Furthermore, and since the start of 2024, six new renewable energy projects have been tendered with a total capacity of 6.7 GW. Additional capacities are planned to be tendered during the current year in order to achieve the 20 GW annual tendered capacities target.

The National Renewable Energy program’s projects aim to reach the Kingdom’s optimal energy mix targets, and displace liquid fuels used in power generation sector and other sectors in the Kingdom, as part of the energy ecosystem’s efforts towards achieving Saudi Vision objectives.

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Business

3,000 Saudi SMEs Benefit from Loans Exceeding $2.1 billion

Cafes are among the small establishments witnessing growth in the Saudi market (SPA)
Cafes are among the small establishments witnessing growth in the Saudi market (SPA)
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3,000 Saudi SMEs Benefit from Loans Exceeding $2.1 billion

Cafes are among the small establishments witnessing growth in the Saudi market (SPA)
Cafes are among the small establishments witnessing growth in the Saudi market (SPA)

Around 3,000 Saudi SMEs benefited from The Small and Medium Enterprises Loan Guarantee Program (Kafalah) during the first half of 2024.

The program reported issuing 3,543 financing guarantees worth over SAR 8 billion, compared to SAR 7.2 billion last year, marking an 11.66% increase. The value of the guarantees provided exceeded SAR 6 billion, compared to SAR 5.7 billion in 2023, reflecting a 4.63% increase, according to a statement by Kafalah.

CEO and Board Member Homam Hashem stated that SMEs are the main economic driver and crucial for achieving economic development and income diversification, as emphasized by Vision 2030.

He highlighted the importance of government and private sector efforts to support SMEs and address their challenges, pointing to the program’s success as a public-private partnership model.

Kafalah program, in coordination with the SME Bank, aims to achieve Vision 2030 goals in all initiatives and products, helping SMEs obtain financing to grow and expand across the Kingdom, and encouraging financial institutions to engage with the SME sector.

Since its launch in fiscal year 2006, and until the end of the second quarter of 2024, the program has approved more than 63,000 guarantees benefitting 22,000 SMEs, with a total value of financing exceeding SAR 99 billion ($26.4 billion). The total value of issued guarantees amounted to SAR 70.5 billion.