Egypt can tap renewable energy at a faster pace: ACWA Power CEO

Egypt can procure renewable energy at a faster pace to phase out low-efficiency fossil fuel power plants to reduce power generation cost and carbon content, ACWA Power CEO Paddy Padmanathan said at a renewable energy conference in Egypt.

"Solar and wind energy costs, which are already competing with tariffs for fossil fuel generated electricity per kilowatt-hour, can be further reduced even during a time period where interest rates are rising, as technology keeps driving cost lower," he noted.

"However, there is also a need for governments to support the sector through regulatory frameworks that remove the burden of customs, duties, and taxes on electricity, a basic commodity that is vital to all human endeavour and to life itself.”

Though countries have accepted the compelling value proposition offered by renewable energy and have announced ambitious procurement programs, Padmanathan asserted institutional inertia, limited institutional capacity and know-how are hindering the required pace of renewable energy deployment.

In its latest "Renewable Energy Outlook: Egypt", the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) advised increasing the current target of 42 percent of Egypt’s energy generation to be renewable energy to 53 percent by 2035.

The move will enable Egypt to reduce the energy bill by $900 million per year and reduce adverse effects of air pollution on human health and environmental damage contributing an additional saving of $ 8.1 billion each year to the economy, noted Adnan Amin, secretary general of IRENA.

Dr Mohammed El Khayat, executive chairman of New and Renewable Energy Authority, Egypt, said projects constructed upon the build-operate-transfer (BOT) financing models are deemed attractive for energy investors within the market.

"Similarly, support programs and incentives offered by international financing bodies to support the funding of projects in the energy sector are considered appealing," he said, referring to the launch of "Benban," a PV solar energy complex in Aswan.