14 June 2010 – Abu Dhabi’s Masdar has appointed the consortium of Total and Abengoa Solar as a partner to own, build and operate Shams 1, the world’s largest concentrated solar power (CSP) plant and the first of its kind in the Middle East.
Representing one of Masdar’s flagship projects, Shams 1 will directly contribute towards Abu Dhabi’s target of achieving 7 per cent renewable energy power generation capacity by the year 2020.
The joint venture between Masdar (60 per cent), Total (20 per cent) and Abengoa Solar (20 per cent) will develop, build, operate and maintain the plant, which will be located in Madinat Zayed, approximately 120 km southwest of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Once constructed, Shams1 will be the largest CSP plant in the world, covering an area of 2.5 km2, with a capacity of approximately 100 MW. Its solar field will consist of 768 parabolic trough collectors, which will be supplied by Abengoa Solar.
Construction is set to begin during Q3 2010 and is expected to take approximately two years.
Shams 1 is registered as a project under the United Nations’ Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and is eligible for carbon credits. It is be the first CSP plant registered under the CDM and the second project registered for Masdar.
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