Four groups in for Essaouira wind farm

15 July 2005
Four groups have submitted bids for the estimated $100 million contract to build a 60-MW wind farm at Cap Sim in Essaouira province, and prequalification applications are under evaluation for an estimated $200 million contract for a 140-MW facility near Tangier. The client is state power company Office National de l'Electricite (ONE).

Bids for the Essaouira project have been received from Gamesa, Ecotecniaand Vestas, all of Spain, and Germany's Enercon. The project will have a debt/equity split of about 60:40. Germany's Kreditanstalt fuer Wiederaufbau (KfW) will provide Eur 50 million ($60 million), split into two Eur 25 million ($30 million) portions. One will have a tenor of 40 years, with a 10-year grace period and a margin of 0.75 per cent. The other will have a tenor of 10 years, a five-year grace period and a margin of about 6 per cent, depending on market conditions. ONE will provide an additional Eur 30 million ($36 million) in equity. An award is due by the end of July, with work due to start by the end of the year and the facility set for operations by early 2007. The consultant is Germany's Decon.

ONE is evaluating prequalification bids submitted by the 29 June deadline to develop a wind farm near Tangier. Tenders are expected in two-three months. The scheme calls for the construction of more than 160 wind turbines, each with capacity of 850 kW, control and safety systems, and two 225-kV transmission lines. An award is set for the first half of next year and the facility due to come on stream in the first half of 2008.

The project will have a debt/equity split of about 75:25, with financing from a Eur 50 million loan from KfW, on the same terms as that for Essaouira, a loan of Eur 80 million ($96 million) from the European Investment Bank and Eur 42 million ($50 million) in equity from the client.

Electricite de France (EdF)is the consultant (MEED 10:6:05).

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